Going Ghost Forever?
by xseriouslyx
Summary: In this story Danny learns about life after death. Thrown into the Ghost Zone after his accident with no idea how to use his powers and not accepting his mortality, the teen ghost finds himself at the mercy of Vlad Plasmius after a series of dangerous encounters with other ghosts. Vlad is determined to keep Danny, and train him up in his ghostly abilities.
1. Get your spacesuit on

**Hello again! So this is now my third fanfic which will involve bonding between Danny and Vlad (I love the conflict and endless possibilities which could have evolved from their relationship), which will develop in a plot separate from the show's sequence. I also have this story completed (with a total of 13 chapters) so there will be no disappointing quick finishes or long absences…weekly updates guaranteed!**

 **And just a quick warning… T for mild swearing and death. This story will include references to death and beliefs about the afterlife, which some people may not like or disagree with. Just so you know, it will not discussed in a disrespectful way.**

 **And finally…I DO NOT own the rights to Danny Phantom (Sadly).**

 **()()()**

 _ **Going Ghost…Forever?**_

Danny smiled as he listened to his parents loudly debating with each other along with the banging of metal with different tools and machinery in their basement lab, as he sat in the kitchen with his older sister Jazz and ate lunch. It was a typical Saturday afternoon. Jazz listened to the commotion as well, but unlike Danny, she did not find it amusing.

"How can they spend days on end down there wasting their time building junk based on nonsense?" Jazz snapped, setting her sandwich back on her plate and folding her arms in disapproval.

Danny's smile faded as he looked at his sister. He knew how much Jazz contemned their parents' ghost hunting career…or lack of. It was true that although Jack and Maddie Fenton dedicated so much time and passion into creating ghost hunting equipment, he was unsure if they had actually seen a ghost before, let alone captured one. But then again he had never actually asked them about it. Danny certainly hadn't seen any ghosts, not yet anyway, and he was certain he didn't want to either. If they were real, that is. So like his sister, he tried to limit his association with his parents' ghost hunting.

Danny wasn't quite sure what his own thoughts and feelings were in relation to ghosts. It was difficult to decide when he had parents who were so passionate about their existence, and a sister who was as equally passionate against it. For as long as he could remember it had created a rift in the household. Ever since Jazz was old enough to use the oven and control the hot and cold water taps she had more or less looked out for her and Danny's basic needs, even though she was only two years older than him. Jack and Maddie had launched themselves into their research as soon as they found a spare moment. It's not that they didn't love or deliberately mildly neglect their children, their passion simply had a firm hold on them and stole much of their time. Therefore they took great advantage of their daughter's independence skills, and allowed her to coddle Danny in the process.

Apparently Jack and Maddie had been this way ever since a 'spectral incident' occurred in their college days. Something happened then which had greatly sparked the development of their mutual interest in the paranormal. And then moving to a town like Amity Park, where everyone seemed suspicious or neurotic, only encouraged their research. Some members of the community were grateful to the Fenton's, enough for them to make a living out of their hobby anyway. Others however, openly mocked them. Which made it all the more difficult for their children to lead 'normal' lives.

Danny in particular found it difficult. Jazz simply chose to ignore the potential negative impacts which her parents' career choice could have on her social life, by indulging into her studies. She was planning to excel in school in order to move to a good university and specialise in psychology. And of course in her spare time, she liked to keep a close eye on her little brother.

Although Danny admired his sister's intellect, he couldn't help but feel stuck in her shadow. He struggled to study as well as she did, so he couldn't match her standard if he tried. He also wasn't good at sports, which made him a prime target for jock bullies. Sometimes the fact that he struggled to fit in really got him down. He often wondered how much longer he would have to endure the whole emotional nonsense that came with puberty. But giving that he hadn't even been fourteen that long, he knew it would probably be a while yet. At least he had his best friends, Sam and Tucker, to haul through it with him. At school, they were unjustly equally as out-casted as he was.

As another loud crash came from the lab and the sound of his mother's irritated voice (which was directed at his father), echoed into the kitchen, Danny sighed as he was yet again reminded of just how much his family lacked normality. Jazz growled upon being forced to listen to the racket as well.

"Will you two please cut it out?" She shouted, though not surprised when her plea fell on deaf ears. "I'm so sick of this!" she mumbled to Danny.

Danny shrugged, toying with his sandwich. "They only want to help Jazz. They think what they do helps to protect the community." He responded weakly in their defence, knowing his sister was well aware of their unusual and possibly unjust reasons, and was none too caring about it.

"There are other ways to help the community Danny. Volunteer to help the homeless, organise a blood drive. But hunting ghosts is ridiculous!" Jazz protested.

"Well some people obviously think it's helpful." Danny replied, "I mean, they wouldn't get funding if they didn't right?"

"You know that two wrongs don't make right? Well two crazy groups of people don't create a sane community. And that's what it is. Crazy people claiming they've been terrorised by ghosts and creating moral panics. Mom and dad have simply jumped on the crazy wagon." Jazz argued whilst taking her plate and washing it in the sink.

Danny finished off his sandwich before saying, "I don't know. I mean, if so many people in Amity Park have claimed to have seen ghosts…maybe there is some truth in it you know? They can't all be crazy right?"

Jazz give a bitter chuckle. "Ghosts aren't real Danny, and disturbed mental health is becoming more recognised nowadays. Please do not let them suck you into this nonsense as well. I don't know how I'd ever cope if all the members of my family were hung up on the existence of ghosts."

She smiled reassuringly at Danny as she lifted his empty plate, he smiled back. When Jazz finished drying it off she turned back to him.

"I'm gonna go back upstairs. I've got to finish my essay, it's due on Monday." She glanced at the two egg salad sandwiches which were still sat on the bench.

"I guess they're not coming up for lunch. Again." She sighed. "Do me a favour Danny, go down there and convince them to eat something before one of them passes out."

"Yeah okay." Danny replied, standing up. "Oh and I think I'm gonna meet up with Sam and Tucker after a bit."

Drinking soda and playing video games always came tops when it came to helping Danny feel more 'normal'.

"Again?" Jazz smiled, "Don't you see enough of those two?"

"Would you rather I stayed here and helped mom and dad?" Danny grinned.

"Point taken! See you later Danny." Jazz called as she headed up to her room.

Danny's grin faded as he walked slowly down the stairwell into the lab. He sometimes found the large room fascinating, with all of his parent's scientific equipment and experiments. He was used to it anyway, as his father often demanded that he clean it as part of his chores. But today…he wasn't sure if it was the extra loud banging or his parent's frustrated voices, but something was making him feel uneasy. Just like when he was a small child, and he had associated the lab with a mad scientist he had accidently seen in a horror movie once.

Danny shook off his feelings of uneasiness as he approached his parents. There was no point in making them think that what they were doing was making both their kids uncomfortable. They appeared to be soldering a large round machine. Danny's jaw dropped. The progress they had made in a number of days was remarkable. If nothing else, Jack and Maddie Fenton were determined and ambitious people.

When Maddie caught sight of her son she turned her welder off, lifted her mask, and smiled at him. "Hi sweetie." She greeted him fondly.

"Danny!" Jack shouted loudly, before switching off his flame.

Danny's eyes widened as he watched his father. He could all but hold his breath when he was around his father operating dangerous machinery. Luckily the man slowed his actions and cautiously disarmed himself before addressing his son again.

"Whatta ya think Danny?" He beamed, stepping out of the machine, "isn't she a beaut?"

Danny paused and looked from his father to the machine and back to his father again.

"Uh…Yeah, it's…it's cool. I guess." Danny stammered, walking closer to inspect it. "What uh…what is it exactly?"

"Why it's the Fenton Portal of course!" Jack declared loudly, clapping his son hard on the back.

"The Fenton Portal?" Danny repeated in confusion.

"If we've calculated everything correctly, then this devise should connect us directly to a ghost dimension." Maddie added gleefully, "We may be able to have the chance to explore their atmosphere!"

"Or blow it into oblivion…whatever comes first!" Jack grinned.

"Oh it's so exciting! We haven't come this close since college!" Maddie said, clasping her hands together.

"You got it sweet-cheeks! We're so close I can practically smell the fear from those ghost scum." Jack bellowed, walking nearer to the power outlets. "In fact…why don't we give the portal a whirl?"

"Jack wait!" Cried Maddie.

But Jack had already picked up the power cables and jammed them together. This caused a few sparks to flow in an inward spiral inside the portal, but nothing burst to life and nothing sinister happened. Much to Danny's relief.

Sometimes he prayed his dad would become a little less impulsive. However, looking at Jack's deflated expression made Danny feel a little sorry for him because it hadn't worked.

"Aw!" Cried Jack, he walked over to the entrance and kicked it in anger, "useless piece of junk!"

Maddie quickly jumped to her husband's side to calm him down.

"Jack you know it's not ready just yet, there's still a few bugs to fix." She reassured him. She glanced over at Danny and took account that he was listening before she whispered, "and we still haven't inserted the 'special component' yet."

Danny raised his eyebrows and wondered what the 'special component' was. It wasn't like his mother to want to keep secrets. In fact both of his parents were normally very proud and open about their work regarding ghost related matters.

The truth was Maddie hadn't wanted to unsettle their son with the fact that during combats they had manage to acquire the equivalent of 'ghost blood,' in order to make the portal active and effective: ectoplasm. This component is what the Fenton's believed would make the machine link with spectral activity, and connect them to a ghost dimension.

Jack smiled appreciatively at his wife, "You're right Maddie, as always. Good things come to those who wait I guess."

Danny relaxed again upon seeing his father perk up. Even though he wasn't sure about the whole ghost haunting business, he knew it made his parents happy, and that made him happy. They all turned when they heard footsteps and voices coming down the stairs into the lab.

"Danny?" Called a familiar female voice, "Jazz let us in. You in here?"

Danny smiled, realising his two best friends had decided to come over and visit him instead.

"Yeah you guys, come on down." He answered.

Both Sam and Tucker stood at the bottom of the stairs and eagerly glanced around the lab. They were regular visitors, but both teens took great interest in the fascinatingly weird projects their best friend's parents endured. Tucker was a techno geek and as such appreciated the advanced technology used and occasionally created by the Fenton's. Sam on the other hand was an ultra-recyclo-vegetarian goth, who took great pleasure in expressing her individuality by exploring interests which were considered both unpopular and uncool by her peers. Ghosts used to be one of them, however city wide panics had made it more of a hot topic, much to her distaste.

"Hi Mr. and Mrs Fenton." Tucker grinned, waving at Danny's parents. Sam also politely greeted them.

"Hi Sam, hi Tucker." Maddie welcomed the two fourteen year olds. She had grown very fond of the two teenagers, as she saw them almost as regularly as her own children.

"Hi kids!" Jack beamed, "Wanna check out our new Fenton Portal?" He offered hopingly. Jack Fenton rarely surpassed an opportunity to show off his latest works.

"Um… Maybe that's not the safest idea Jack," Maddie reminded him gently, "and remember what we just discussed?"

"Oh yeah." Jack mumbled with a sheepish smile.

"Maybe next time Mr. Fenton." Tucker said cheerily, "I'd rather be checking out those tasty looking egg salad sandwiches up in the kitchen." He added hintingly.

"Tucker!" Sam scolded for his abruptness.

"Sandwiches?" Jack perked. Another one of his passions: Food.

"Oh Right! Jazz made you guys lunch, that's why I came down here." Danny said.

"Oh Mads we nearly missed lunch!" Cried Jack in disbelieve, "well you know something's important if you almost miss a meal over it!" He laughed heading for the stairs. "Come on Maddie lets chow down!"

Maddie rolled her eyes and followed her husband, before stopping to speak to her son for a moment.

"Danny, Jazz wasn't upset with us for not eating with you kids again was she?" Maddie asked quietly with a slightly concerned tone.

"Uh, no not really." Danny lied, "Jazz is fine mom. Really."

Danny didn't like to tell lies to his parents but in order to keep the peace over the years he had gotten good at it. As far as his parents were aware they were all happy and lived in a secure, functional family unit.

Maddie smiled, feeling reassured. "Thank goodness. I know your sister doesn't always agree with what we do, but she'll see it's for the best one day."

Maddie then followed her husband up to the kitchen, leaving the three teenagers alone in the lab. Sam moved closer to Danny.

"You okay Danny?" She asked.

Both she and Tucker were aware that sometimes Jack and Maddie's ghost obsession created friction in the family. As such, they made sure that they were always there for Danny.

"Yeah I'm good." Danny smiled at his friend reassuringly, "That's nothing."

"Yeah, but this sure isn't." Tucker interjected, referring to the Fenton Portal. He was stood a few feet in front of it, observing its detail closely. "What's the deal with this thing dude?" He asked.

Sam walked over to were her other friend was stood, also looking at it more carefully.

"Yeah, your dad said it was a 'Fenton Portal'?" She probed.

Danny sighed, wondering how he was going to explain another one of his parent's crazy inventions to his friends. He also wondered why his mom didn't want his dad to tell them. He figured she was maybe just afraid that it would fail. It was their second attempt at building one, and Danny had a feeling that something may have went wrong during the first time they tried to build one in college. After all, that had been twenty years ago.

Danny stood in between his friends, gazing at the portal entrance.

"Mom and dad think that once this thing works they will be able to travel to some ghost world." Danny said weakly, thinking that it sounded much crazier when said out loud.

"Really? Cool." Sam responded.

"Come on Sam, you don't think it's really gonna work do you?" Danny mumbled. He was honestly slightly embarrassed by the fact that his parents were dedicating so much time and effort into something which most people would find utterly ridiculous.

"You never know dude." Tucker chuckled, "You're dad sounded pretty optimistic."

"He's always optimistic!" Danny laughed.

He then walked over and curiously lifted up the two cables which his father had plugged together just before Sam and Tucker had arrived.

"He did sound like he thought they were getting pretty close though." He told his two friends. "They said that once they add some 'special component' they will get the results they're after."

"So…this thing is harmless until they do that then?" Sam asked eagerly, standing on top of the circled entrance of the empty portal.

"I think so…" Danny replied warily, watching Sam as she gently tapped one of her feet against the metal.

"Uh Sam, what are you doing?" Tucker asked suspiciously.

Sam turned and grinned at her two friends.

"Oh come on!" She said willingly, bounding away from the entrance and walking over to Danny and Tucker. "If it's not working yet we may as well have a little look around inside. You know, see what makes a Fenton Portal tick!"

Danny and Tucker glanced at each other nervously, they were too familiar with consequences which tend to follow after Sam suggests even a slightly daring idea.

Tucker twitched his nose, as a curious thought crossed his mind with the focus being the portal.

"Hey, if this thing takes you to the ghost land, why didn't your folks just call it a Ghost Portal?" He asked Danny.

Danny simply rolled his eyes and shrugged in response. He knew it was really because his father liked to dedicate all of his joint inventions with Maddie to themselves. Jack was strangely a proud man, a trait which didn't quite match the rest of his friendly personality.

"Sam…" Danny began worriedly, "You know my parents will flip if they catch us wondering inside their portal. I'll end up grounded or something."

"Yeah Danny's right." Tucker agreed, "Maybe it's not such a good idea, Sam."

"Oh come on Tucker you should love this, it's totally techno!" Sam argued heartily, "Or are you afraid some nasty old ghost is gonna come up and snatch you?" She laughed tugging him playfully.

Danny and Tucker still seemed uneasy. She sighed at her two friends and glanced into a box sitting a few metres from her, and grinned. Sam dived into the box and yanked out a white and black hazmat suit.

"And Danny, this is just the sort of stuff you get in space programs! Just imagine you're exploring a space shuttle!" She smiled, thrusting the suit into his arms. "Look, here's your spacesuit!"

Danny chuckled at Sam's clever humour. He couldn't deny that she was very convincing, and he couldn't help but give into her when she smiled at him like that…

"Go on, put it on!" Sam encouraged, her lilac eyes twinkling at him.

"Go ahead Danny, just for laughs." Tucker grinned.

"I don't know what you're grinning about Tucker, we're going in too! As soon as I find us our 'spacesuits.'" Sam told him, rummaging again through the box.

Danny laughed as his two friends debated with one another about whether or not Tucker was going to go into the portal. Danny couldn't blame Tucker for not wanting to, as he pulled the hazmat suit over his clothes, that uneasy feeling crept over him again.

Sam smiled when she saw Danny had put the suit on. Danny hoped she would say something like, 'wow you look so cool' or 'awesome Danny'…

"Oh God, you look so lame!" The goth girl laughed, pointing at Danny.

Tucker sniggered too when he turned around and looked at him. Danny felt a little hurt that his two best friends were laughing at him, until he looked down and saw what he was wearing.

"Guess my dad should have went into the trademark business instead." Danny chuckled, ripping his father's velcro face off his chest.

"What a triumph it would have been for the fashion or appliance industry!" Tucker joked.

Sam eventually stopped laughing and nodded to her friend in approval.

"Much better. You look great Danny." She said with a smile.

Danny smiled back, and was starting to feel good about the whole crazy idea of rummaging around inside a pending ghost portal…

"Why don't you go on inside." Sam suggested, "Tucker and I will come in in a minute. With or without our 'spacesuits!'" She sneered at Tucker, who pouted back.

Danny stood on the edge of the entrance, where Sam had previously stood, and looked into the darkness. He couldn't tell how long it was. He looked back at his friends who peered eagerly at him.

"Here goes!" He smiled before stepping inside.

His footsteps echoed surprisingly loudly through the metallic portal, it was almost like a small tunnel. Danny took a few more steps, and shivered as he ran is gloved hands over the cold round metal walls. Danny didn't know what the fuss was about, but it was really too dark to see anything that may have been of interest.

Sam and Tucker had become quiet. Danny decide to turn around and see what was keeping them. He thought he would get out anyway, it was really nothing spectacular and he was certain a genuine space program would be much more exciting than this.

"Sam, Tucker? It's not worth your while guys, it's just like a metal tunnel." Danny called to them.

Danny didn't realise that there was an internal 'ON' switch built into one of the metal slates of the portal walls. He certainly wasn't aware that he had placed his hand over the switch, and when getting his balance…pressed into it.

Sam and Tucker jumped when a bright white flash suddenly shot from inside the portal. Their eyes widened in horror when they heard Danny scream.

"Oh God!" Cried Sam, she leapt up and ran over to the portal, "Danny!"

Tucker panicked, but quickly reached over and yanked apart two cables. One connected to the outlet source and the other to the portal. It was the same two that Jack had connected earlier. Tucker didn't know what it would do, he just hoped it would shut off the portal, as one of his friends was inside and the other one was making a run for it.

It was the right call. Within seconds of Danny activing the internal electrical circuit of the portal, Tucker had disabled the outer source, disconnecting the electrical systems. The bright flash had vanished indicating this just as Sam reached the entrance.

Fearlessly, Sam ran into the portal and dropped to her knees where Danny lay. He was still, and his eyes were closed.

"Danny? Danny!" She cried desperately, shaking his shoulders.

"Sam what happened?" Tucker gasped running up to them.

"Tucker I don't think he's breathing! Call an ambulance, get Mr. and Mrs Fenton. Hurry!" Sam yelled.

Tucker ran out of the lab in attempt to get help. Sam stayed with Danny. She wasn't trained in first aid but she gave it a shot anyway. She pushed hard on the chest compressions and she breathed deep into his month. No change.

She stopped after a few seconds when she heard Danny's mother and father burst through the basement door and shout loudly as they ran down the stairs.

Tears of fear started to form in Sam's eyes. Danny wasn't breathing, and although she tried hard she couldn't find a trace of his pulse. Sam took hold of his limp hand. If she was right in believing that the flash had contained electricity, it was very likely that all of Danny's organs had been short circuited from shock.

She turned her head when Jack and Maddie leapt into the portal and stood over them. Jack's jaw dropped, and Maddie stared with disbelieving wide eyes,

"Dear God, no." She whispered, leaning down beside her son.

Sam let out a sob, "I'm so sorry."

She wasn't sure for certain who she was saying it to, but she was certain that Danny was gone… and that she was to blame.

 **()()()**

 **Hope everyone enjoyed this first chapter, please don't forget to review! I am aware that it was very much an introductory chapter, but it was necessary. The plot thickens in the next chapter which will be posted next week. Ta for now!**

 **xseriouslyx**


	2. You look like you've seen a ghost

**Hi everyone! So as promised, here's is the weekly update. This chapter is where the excitement and adventure begins. Hope you enjoy!**

 **()()()**

Danny flickered his eyes open, although it was a struggle, like he hadn't opened them in a really long time. Unaware of any time which had passed, he still expected to see the dark metal slating which made up the Ghost Portal, that's where he passed out anyway. He wondered what had caused that white flash?

However, his eyes widened when his vision focused in on a dark sky with glowing green swirls flowing through it. Spooked, Danny shot up immediately, with no hesitation or physical limitations whatsoever. His jaw dropped as he turned his head and realised he was sitting in the middle of some sort of weird atmosphere. There were strange floating purple doors everywhere, and random sized floating islands which all seemed customised to a particular theme. It was like Danny had landed in some sort of bizarre video game or T.V show.

"Sam? Tucker?" He called out hopingly. There was no reply, he was alone.

Danny realised he was stuck on his own floating island, well, floating dirt rock more like. If he stepped off, he could fall to his death. It felt like he was literally just hanging in the sky. Danny shakily got to his feet. He suddenly noticed that his hazmat suit was now black. That was weird, he was sure it had been white before…

"What is this place?" He whispered, his eyes widening with fear. "Did the Ghost Portal bring me here? Was that what the white flash was all about?"

Danny prayed that he was not in some creepy ghost world. This just had to be a bad dream or worst case scenario, a hallucination. There was no way he was really standard in some alternate paranormal world, right? But if a white flash brought him here, what was going to take him back? Danny shivered, and he felt cold all of a sudden.

"You, Punk!" Shouted an authoritarian voice with a southern accent, "You're loitering. That's a violation of Law 206: 'No Loitering.' That's against the rules." He said threateningly.

Danny gasped and stiffened with fear as he was approached by a tall white figure who wore a smart white suit, a black hat, and had small, angry looking green eyes.

Danny looked up in horror as the figure floated over so as he was looking down on him, and was only a few inches away from Danny's face.

"You'r g-ghost." Danny stammered in alarm.

The ghost's eyes narrowed further in on Danny.

"You think you're funny, wise guy?" The ghost demanded, "You're in a lotta trouble now son, you're goin away for a long time!"

The ghost reached out, grasped Danny's suit and lifted off him the rock so he too was floating in mid-air with the ghost.

Danny let out a frightened yelp. Why was this ghost attacking him?

"What are you doing? Let me go, please!" Danny begged, struggling in the ghost's grasp.

"I don't take mercy on rule breaking misfits like you. Anyone who breaks the rules goes to jail." The ghost answered menacingly, "Consider this your arrest."

"No! You don't understand!" Cried Danny in a panic as the ghost began to haul him away, "I don't belong here. I'm lost!"

The lawman chuckled at Danny's plea. He heard it all before, and his ability to take pity had always been non-existent. He lifted Danny higher so as they were both eye to eye.

"Listen here, punk. I don't care who you are or where you're from. All I know is you broke the rules, and that is a jailable offence. Learn to accept the consequences of your actions you lowlife punk!" Sneered the ghost.

Danny felt himself physically boil as a response to the ghost's insult, particularly in his eyes for some unusual reason. Before his attacker could respond, he was forced to let go of Danny, as he was suddenly blasted several feet away by a forceful ray.

Danny gasped as the ghost released him out of shock. Had he caused that blasting ray…with his eyes? What was going on? He went rub his eyes when he noticed he was floating. In thin air. Frightened, Danny let out a short scream.

"I'll give you something to scream about." Growled an angry voice, "thought you were going to play the innocent act with me? I'll teach you to pick your fights more wisely!"

Danny's eyes widened as he saw the ghost making a fast advance on him. With the intention of defending himself by pushing the ghost away, Danny pushed his arms in front of him. Unexpectedly another blast appeared, knocking the ghost back again. This time it came from Danny's hands. He stared at them in horror.

"What's happening to me?" He trembled.

Hearing the ghost groan angrily, Danny wondered if he would be able to 'run away' from him somehow. He frantically moved his legs in a running motion, but nothing happened. The other ghost had recovered and was now charging towards Danny again. Danny panicked for fear that the ghost would likely kill him if he didn't escape.

Suddenly, almost involuntarily or naturally, Danny's whole body stiffened and he was perfectly straight with arms above his head. He wanted to move fast, and that's exactly what happened.

Danny shrieked as he shot like a rocket through the weird universe, not that he could see any of it, he had his eyes shut tight. It felt like he was moving faster than the speed of a car on a highway, 100mph easily. As he wasn't looking, he bashed into a number of things. He didn't know what they could have been, anything; a door, a rock…or even another ghost. He tried not to think about it.

Not long after he took off, Danny's lack of flying skills caused him to crash land on a strange jungle island. It was very grassy so he had a somewhat soft landing. However, due to his fast speed he landed with a lot of force. Danny summersaulted and tumbled over several times before he knocked into something which caused him to finally stop.

Shaking, and panting for air, Danny lay still and tried to remain conscious. He tried to pretend that everything was okay, he had not just encountered an angry ghost, he had not shot beams out of his eyes and hands, and he certainly did not fly at an inhuman speed. No, no everything would be just fine. Then he heard an angry grunt, a female's voice this time.

A few seconds later, a girl was stood over Danny, scowling down at him. For a spilt second Danny thought she was an ordinary girl. Emo-styled clothes and make-up but a normal girl all the same…That was until Danny realised that this girl had pale blue skin, her eyes glowed slightly, and her hair appeared to be blue fire. Danny's worst fear had been confirmed: This girl was another ghost.

The girl snarled at Danny and grabbed him in the same rough manner the other ghost had, clearly she was angry with him too. Danny's stomach lurched with fear. The ghost pulled Danny upwards and only stopped when centimetres separated their faces.

"Hey dipstick!" She barked into Danny's face, "What do you think you're doing on this island? Everyone knows it's private, and God help anyone who comes here uninvited!"

Danny gulped. He was certain this ghost was going to kill him.

"You're lucky, the owner's not home." The girl continued, not bothered by the possibility of the owner having a go at her for trespassing. "But that won't help you with this!" She yelled, displaying a guitar with her free hand.

"When you so rudely dropped in you crashed into me and made me drop my axe! Now it has a scratch!" She screamed angrily, "Any last words before I waste you?" She said darkly, her eyes narrowing on Danny.

Danny swallowed and beads of sweat formed on his forehead.

"I am so sorry I didn't mean to I was just trying to get away from this ghost who said he was going to arrest me but I think he wanted to kill me and I accidently blasted him but I don't know how and then I flew away really really fast and I don't know how (*gasps for air*) and then I accidently crashed into you and I am really really sorry about that but I don't know how I got here and I don't know how to get home and I really really need help!" Danny spurted out in a panic.

The ghost sighed loudly and rolled her eyes at Danny. Her angered expression turned to one of annoyance and her grip on Danny's suit loosened.

"Great." She said sarcastically, "You're new."

She dropped Danny uncaringly and went back and sat on the rock she was perched on before he had fell into her. She pretended to ignore him and inspected the imaginary damage on her guitar. Danny stared at her, unsure if he should be relieved or worried.

"You're not going to kill me?" He asked quietly, slowing getting to feet.

"Nah." The girl replied, "It would be pretty pathetic of me to waste a newbie who doesn't know any better, I guess."

Danny bit his lip, concerned by the description she had attached to him.

"Um, what do you mean 'newbie'?" He queried, hoping that the ghost wouldn't change her mind and 'waste' him after all.

"You took a breath when you spouted through that spiel of nonsense." She said, "You obviously don't realise that here we don't need to 'take a breath.'"

The ghost girl paused for a moment, as if gathering her thoughts. She then looked at Danny.

"Pull up a rock newbie, I'm gonna tell you some stuff." She said in an almost reluctant tone. It was like it was too much effort to speak to him or something.

Danny slowly walked over and sat on a rock opposite her. He looked at her flowing blue fire hair, daring dark make-up, and her black jeans and crop top. She was not what he had imagined a ghost would look like. Or even the other ghost for that matter, but he had kept slightly more to the stereotype: at least he was white like the ghosts in cartoons.

"I'm Danny, by the way." He spoke quietly, not wanting her to label him 'newbie.'

The ghost girl shot him a quick look of surprise, it almost appeared as though she was confused or didn't believe that was his name. She turned away again briefly, and set her guitar down.

"Ember." She said, confirming her name. "Right. First of all no interruptions at all, and I'm only gonna tell you this stuff once. Got it?"

Danny nodded solemnly.

"Okay. So maybe you've not got this yet, but you're in the Ghost Zone. Welcome to our creepy home. Not many humans believe this place exists. Most people prefer to believe there is a heaven and a hell or some kind of 'Promised Land', some people think that there's nothing at all. Well there's also the Ghost Zone. From what we know, a ghost appears here a few days after their death. Only certain kinds of people turn ghost and come here though. People who can't move on, have regrets or unfinished business from their life. These issues trap them here until they are resolved. It's like purgatory, only more fun. It's rumoured that once the unfinished business or bad feelings have been resolved, the ghost/spirit/phantom/poltergeist, whatever, can move on. Be this to a higher or lower place. Or maybe reincarnated to live another life, I don't know, its guess work from there. All I know is ghosts come and ghost go, what triggers it is beyond anybody's guess. So us ghosts try to sneak back to earth now and again, to finish our unsettled business. The living don't like it because sometimes we're a bit…overbearing, and they get scared. But it's all about what's waiting for us on the other side that drives us to it ya know?" Ember explained.

Danny stared at her, stunned into silence. His parents were right, there was a ghost universe: The Ghost Zone. It was incredible…But why was he here?

"I…I don't understand." Danny finally mumbled to her.

"What I gotta spell it out for you?" Ember snapped.

"Why am I here?" he asked.

"How should I know? I don't know why I'm here, no one does. That's what we have to work out, so we can fix it. Duh."

"No, I'm not…I'm not dead." Danny stammered, "I can't be a ghost."

Ember chuckled meanly before saying, "Look, I'm not going through the seven stages of grief with you okay? Jump to number seven and deal with it. You're stone cold dead."

"No I'm not!" Danny retorted.

"Hello? Take a look at yourself recently?" Ember sneered rudely, taking out a compact mirror from her jeans pocket and handing it to him. "Bet you didn't look like that when you were human."

Danny snatched the mirror, he scowled as he opened it, and then gasped at his reflection.

"My hair…My eyes! What's happened?" Danny wailed as he stared at his snow white hair which used to be black, and glowing green eyes, which were meant to be icy blue.

"No ghost looks exactly like they did when they were alive. Some of us change completely, hardly looking as though we were ever human. Only the ones who can morph can take a human appearance, weirdos like Spectra and Bertrand. But even that might not be what they looked like when they were alive. 'Morphs' are the only ones who can pass for human. And me…if you pretend the hair is a wig and the skin is weird customised tan..." Ember explained.

Danny gave the mirror back and held his head in his hands. He couldn't possibly be dead…could he?

"This is wrong." Danny whined, "This is so wrong!"

Ember folded her arms, and rolled her eyes at Danny.

"It's like this, dipstick, I've been around a while…well, not as long as most of the other ghosts I suppose, but from what I've seen it's never that easy for someone to accept they're dead straight away. You have to deal with the whole memory wipe; not knowing who you are, your age, job, family, cause of death. It's like starting over from nothing and it's not fun." Ember said wistfully. "But it's believed that everyone's death is reflected in their personality or appearance somehow. Take Walker for example, that's the ghost who tried to arrest you by the way, don't worry about him you're not in his turf now. Well, he could have been killed in a prison breakout riot. Could explain why he's the prison warden, and such a stickler for the rules. Me, I reckon I was an incredible rock star. That's why I'm so good at singing and playing guitar. Maybe one day I got mauled to death one crazed fan, who just took it too far." Ember mused fondly. "You look like you got murdered by Cruella de Vil, with the whole black and white thing!" She laughed.

Danny scowled at Ember for her obscene suggestion regarding his death. Although, he secretly thought that she looked too young to possibly have been a famous rock star. If he had to guess, he would judge by the flaming hair that she had died in a fire…Not to mention the fact that she subconsciously chose to name herself 'Ember' after her death.

Danny sighed. "Ember, the reason why I don't believe I'm dead is because unlike you, I remember everything about my life. Except how I died."

"Rubbish!" Ember snapped cruelly, "No one can remember that stuff. No one."

"But I do!" Danny argued. "My name is Danny Fenton, I turned fourteen three weeks ago, my parents are Jack and Maddie, I've got an older sister called Jazz who's sixteen, we live in Amity Park, and I go to Casper High with my best friends Sam Manson and Tucker Foley."

Ember's eyes widened. She knew there was something strange about Danny, right from whenever he gave his name. No 'newbie' had ever been able to give their name outright, and they rarely picked an ordinary 'human' one for themselves. How could he remember so much? Something wasn't right.

Then something Danny had said triggered a malevolent thought in Ember…

He mentioned that he lived in Amity Park. A prime area for allowing ghosts to return to earth, via natural tears which opened regular gateways between the two dimensions. This was not a problem. However he said his parents were Jack and Maddie Fenton. Two relentless ghost hunters who hindered ghost activity where possible and by any means.

And as such, they had prevented many ghosts from completing their business and disabled them from moving on…including Ember. She winced as she recalled their latest encounter together, the two sicko's had manage to disarm her. Though they weren't satisfied with this, they attempted to use their upper hand to ambush and slice her with sharp objects. She remembered them shouting something about her ectoplasm…She was lucky to have escaped, and had not attempted to venture to the human world since because of it.

Her fury fuelled at this horrid memory. She slowly picked up her guitar and stood, her face twitching with anger and resentment. Danny looked up at her, wondering why she had not responded to his confused predicament. He could see in her expression that something was wrong.

"Ember, are you okay?" Danny asked cautiously, predicting something he had said had upset her. Maybe she was upset because he could remember his life and she couldn't?

Ember suddenly let out a shriek of anger and strummed down forcefully on her guitar strings, powerfully blasting Danny several feet backwards and stunning him greatly. No one would know to look at Ember's guitar that it was a great weapon. One that she could use well when provoked.

She walked over to where Danny was. He was on his knees and clutching his left arm with his right hand. He didn't think any sinister damage had been done but it was painful just the same. He looked up at Ember with a glare, hurt that she had suddenly attacked him after appearing to help him. Any trust he was beginning to develop in her was gone, leaving him vulnerable again.

"Why did you do that?" Danny asked angrily. Were all these ghosts so quick to unjustified anger?

Ember clutched her guitar into her shoulder and chest like a shield.

"You're the son of those two despicable ghost hunters!" Ember accused, "Do you realise how much damage they've done? How many lives they have ruined? And now you have the nerve to turn up here?"

Danny scrambled a few feet away from the diva, realising she meant business.

"You don't understand, what they do has nothing to do with me." Danny claimed, "I didn't even know if I believed in ghosts until today. And I'm sure if they knew the whole truth they would stop hindering ghosts and probably start helping you. That's what my parents do, they like to help people."

"Yeah 'people!'" Ember hissed, "But us ghosts don't get a look in! We're just vile creatures in the eyes of humans, who would ever want to help us? You're a liar. A liar and a sneak. I'm gonna enjoy wasting you!"

Ember's guitar started to glow. Danny raised his hand to protect his eyes from the brightness. He tried to focus on Ember.

"What do you mean waste?" He asked fearfully as she closed in on him, "You said I was already dead."

Ember chuckled wickedly, "There is one more thing you should know." She said in a bitter tone, rising off the ground and preparing for impact. "When a ghost gets wasted there is no heaven, rebirth, or reincarnation, because they have failed in their attempts to better themselves. There's just nothing. You're soul ceases to exist and you're wiped out. Gone. Unless you've been bad, in which case Satin/Lucifer/Dark One whoever he is to whoever believes he's there, claims them for his own. So either way, this is gonna end badly for you!"

Having said that, Ember didn't hesitate in thrashing her chords, which dealt out forceful and painful blows on Danny. Unfamiliar and unaware of his own supernatural talents which he possessed as a ghost, Danny had no way to defend himself against the vengeful ghost. Ember showed no mercy, remembering the hurt she had felt at her failed attempt on earth because the Fenton's had exiled her from Amity Park in their stride.

It wasn't very long until Ember had rendered Danny unconscious with her deadly chords. She hovered over him for a few seconds, knowing that one more blow could be fatal, and he would vanish into nonexistence forever. She had never 'wasted' anyone before, however she knew the Fenton's deserved to feel the pain which so many other ghosts had felt because of them. If Danny could remember who he was, he could maybe find his way back to them, so they won't really have lost him. He could even go on to be just like them, vile and ghost-hating. Creating more tribulations for all ghost-kind. Ember couldn't let that happen.

Ember squeezed her guitar pick and raised her arm up high, preparing for the final blow…

"Ember!" Yelled an irritated voice.

Ember halted upon hearing it and sighed heavily, knowing who it was. Seconds passed when the ghost who delivered the yell, and rightful dweller of the island, appeared. There stood a mechanical-like ghost. Well, the actual ghost was a small green entity. The metal and machinery made up his eco-skeleton, giving him a robotic and deadly appearance. It suited his personality better and aided him with his occupation; great hunter of rare ghostly creatures and objects, as he could carry and use all his weapons more effectively.

Ember rolled her eyes as her boyfriend approached her. "Hey Skulker." She greeted him dryly.

Skulker scowled at her, disliking her tone, and growled angrily when he saw Danny lying unconscious on his hunting ground.

"Who's the whelp?" He demanded, "You know no one is allowed on my island unless I say so!"

"Yeah, yeah, everyone knows how possessive you are Skulker." Ember mocked. "He's not here willingly, that much I promise you. He's a newbie. But not for long. I was about to waste him before you rudely interrupted."

Skulker widened his eyes. Although his girlfriend could get huffy and irritated, he knew it was not in her nature to waste someone. Let alone fresh meat who probably didn't know any better, and quite possibly didn't deserve it.

"What did he do?" The hunter asked, not thinking it wise to point out Ember's quick temper but lack of killing aspiration.

"You won't believe it Skulker. You know those two ghost hunters from Amity Park? That's their kid!" She cried, pointing at Danny. "He doesn't deserve a second chance, not after what they did to us!"

Skulker paused for a minute, thinking hard. Could his girlfriend be right? Had the son of the Ghost Zone's most hated predators really landed in their grasp? And if it was true, what would it mean for him?

"You're sure Ember?" Skulker inquired, "How do you know it's him?"

Ember was silent for a few seconds, recollecting the strange confession the boy had made to her moments ago.

"He told me Skulker." She answered solemnly. "I don't know how it's possible, but he recalled who he is. His death is the only thing he doesn't remember. He knows everything, it's like he didn't die at all. But why did he turn up here?"

Skulker looked at his girlfriend. He felt bad for her, he could see all the anger and hurt and confusion in her eyes. Lack of confidence and arrogance wasn't becoming of her.

"I don't know." He confessed. "But we can't waste him." He said firmly.

Ember stared at Skulker, normally killing didn't bother him the way it would her. It was simply in his nature, he was a hunter after all.

"Why? Do you want to keep him as some unique prize? Behold Skulker's ghost prisoner whom holds his life memories!" She scoffed.

"No!" Skulker snapped, "I just know someone who would be very interested in meeting him."

 **()()()**

 **Sorry guys…seemed like a good place to end a chapter! On the upside, we move the setting to Wisconsin, and we know who lives there (I'm not referring to the Dairy King by the way!) Not long to next update, thanks for reading and I hope you stay with it! Don't forget to tell me your thoughts!**

 **xseriouslyx**


	3. Masters of pleasure and business

**Hi again! Before I leave you to it I would just like to express my thanks to all those who have followed/favourited/reviewed this story so far, it means a lot to know that my story is being enjoyed, so thank you. Here is chapter 3, and I hope it is to everyone's liking.**

 **()()()**

Vlad Masters glared coldly out of the window of his study, scowling at the horrendous weather which seemed to stretch over all of Wisconsin. This meant his luxurious home was no exception. The cold gale winds howled, causing tree branches to crack against the stone walls and glass windows, and the rain pelted out of the black night sky and battered down against the glass in front of Vlad.

The man felt a sting of irony, it was as though the weather was reflecting his mood.

Not that this happened often. Vlad was generally always an unfriendly and unhappy man, however today he felt more angry and cold than he usually did. Today he remembered.

It twenty years ago on this day that the accident occurred.

The accident which Vlad believed ruined his life, the accident which could have killed him, the accident which turned him into a half human half ghost hybrid. It was true, Vlad was a miracle of nature, or freak depending on certain other ghosts' opinions. There was no other ghost like him, and many were envious. For Vlad could walk among the humans undetected, and he could use his ghostly abilities to enhance and benefit himself.

However, this was not what confused and even frightened some of those who dwelled in the Ghost Zone. Vlad was a ghost just like them, no one could deny it. But he was also still alive. Vlad continued to breathe air, and have a pulse, and he had aged over time.

This was not normal. And many ghosts were cautious of Vlad Masters. Or, as he preferred to be address whilst in his ghost form: Vlad Plasmius.

For even though he was only half ghost, Vlad Masters was not half determined. Once he realised that the accident had enabled him to develop supernatural skills and powers, he did not hesitate in training himself on how to control them. He proved himself to be very cunning and dangerous to those in both the human and ghost worlds, due to his impressive abilities and cunningness. From this, he obtained respect and fear from most within the Ghost Zone, and power and fortune in his human life.

But none of this made Vlad happy, and it was eating away at him on the inside. For he knew his chances for happiness were robbed from him; robbed when Jack Fenton screwed up the spectral portal experiment which together they, and Maddie, had conducted in college, because of Jack's miscalculations and diet soda. Vlad was ruined there and then.

The years he spent in the hospital had caused his social life to diminish, including the close one he had been forming with Maddie. Not only had Jack hospitalised him with a life threatening condition, he'd moved in on Vlad's girl. Whilst Vlad had been locked away, his tragic misfortune had only pushed them into each other's arms. About a year after his hospitalisation, Jack and Maddie made one of very few visits, and announced their engagement.

Vlad isolated himself from the couple ever since. He ignored the wedding invitation, two baby announcements, Christmas letters, you name it Vlad trashed it. The anger and hurt was too much for him to let go of the past and move on.

Although just because he refused to see the Fenton's on their terms, it didn't mean he wasn't a big part of their lives. Vlad was quite obsessed with the lives of Jack and Maddie, he frequently spied on them via his ghostly minions and gadget bugs. He was searching for a crack on the surface of their marriage, to find a possible way to drive them apart and leave an opening for him. For regardless of the pain and hurt they had caused, Vlad had never stopped loving Maddie. He still wanted her, so badly that as of late he had even considered the possibilities of killing Jack, simply to get him out of the picture. But their marriage seemed sturdier than he had hoped. The only time there was ever an argument between them was at Christmas, when the two of them would loudly debate over the existence of Santa Claus.

As a result of his spy networks, Vlad had been well aware that Jack and Maddie were reattempting to create the spectral portal they had failed to complete in college. Vlad found this humorous in a bitter sort of way. Why had they waited so long to try again? Did they feel it would be an insult to Vlad, given what had happened to him? Or did they fear too much about their own skin to make another quick attempt? Regardless, Vlad didn't care. He had long since obtained the tools necessary to secure his own personal portal which give him a gateway between his own basement lab and the Ghost Zone. What the Fenton's were trying to accomplish and find had already become second nature and standard to him.

Vlad sighed and walked away from the window. He lifted his small glass of bourbon and took a sip. He sat at his desk chair and attempted to get the several pieces of paper regarding his businesses to convince his preoccupied mind to focus on something else. But his thoughts remained on the Fenton's.

He should have known that something bad was going to happen again as a result of them building a portal. But he never thought for one second that this would occur. He thought his mind was simply playing ironic tricks on him when he saw the recent commotion on his spy cams.

Vlad had pieced together that Jack and Maddie's teenaged son had been killed inside the unfinished portal they had been building. This was confirmed by a localised Amity Park newspaper which Vlad had attained. Apparently an electrical surge of power had spread through the vault whilst the boy had been standing inside it. The shock had caused his heart to stop beating almost instantly. His funeral was to be the following day.

Vlad shook his head slowly as he thought about the tragic incident. He was so young. It had confirmed for him of how lucky he had been not to have also died out right in his similar accident all those years ago.

Vlad also thought about Maddie, and the pain and loss which she would be feeling right now. Could this tragedy be the opportunity he was waiting for? Would Maddie blame Jack, the death of their son creating an unrepairable rift between them? Why on earth did they allow the child near such a dangerous appliance anyway? Or would the pain from their loss drive them further into each other's arms for comfort? Vlad didn't know. And regardless, Maddie would need time to grieve for her dead son before Vlad could consider any plan of action.

He was still sitting alone with his thoughts when an eerily green yet sparkly smoke started to seep around his study. He rolled his eyes as an amused chuckle echoed around him.

"Desiree." Vlad stated flatly, "To what do I owe the pleasure?"

As if on cue, a beautiful voluptuous female ghost with jet black hair and ruby red eyes spiralled out of the smoke. Desiree is a vindictive genie ghost. She obtains power from granting other people's desires as they state them, and watching the result backfire on them in ironic events, so the person is regretful and worse off.

Giving that Vlad is a rather ambitious man, Desiree began to plague him many years ago, in the hope that one day he would ask her to grant an incredibly huge deep desire, which would then boost her own power. However after so long, and getting used to Vlad's wit and charm, Desiree eventually lost the interest of causing the downfall of the powerful man. She now hopes that one day he will openly share with her, as a sign of his trust, and with so confirm that he has the same secret intimate feelings for her, as she does for him.

Desiree smiled seductively at Vlad. "Just wondering if you have any requests you wish to share?"

Vlad raised an eyebrow at her. Oblivious to Desiree's feelings for him, Vlad always assumed that Desiree wanted to leech power off him as she did with everyone else. However giving her frequent visits, he acknowledged a sort of bizarre friendship had developed between them over the years, because Vlad stopped seeing her as a threat. He now views her as no more than a distraction and mild nuisance, who can sometimes offer up a laugh.

"Been a slow day for you then, Desiree?" Vlad mocked.

"Uh! You have no idea!" Desiree moaned dramatically, draping herself over Vlad's desk. Almost knocking over his glass of bourbon in the process.

"I see." Vlad dryly responded, ignoring the genie's seductive behaviour, naively believing it to simply be her nature. "So you came and interrupted me. Thinking there's something I can do for you, hm?"

Desiree shot up and grinned at the hybrid, "Oh no, Vlad! It's not what you can do for me, it's what I can do for you! Got any ideas?"

Desiree batted her eyes and leaned closer into Vlad. The hybrid smiled back at her.

"You really don't give up do you?" He chuckled, walking away from her and pretending to skim over his bookcase. "You've got determination I'll give you that."

Desiree turned, only to face his back, and slumped her shoulders, discouraged. "What do you mean?" She pouted.

Vlad turned back around to her, "Desiree after all these years you would think that you would understand that I am not going to fall for any of your tricks." He said drolly, "You will never know my 'deepest desires,' my dear."

"Why not?" Desiree demanded in frustration, "And what do you mean, 'tricks?'"

Vlad chuckled again, "I mean your little seductive routine is getting slightly old now. It may work on some idiots, but I am not an idiot. It's a woman's oldest trick in the book for getting what she wants, yes?"

Desiree scowled at Vlad. Not only had he insulted her flirting, but he had been incredibly sexist. Two things the genie ghost felt very passionately about.

"And as for my desires, well…I'd rather not say, as my life is miserable and unstable enough without your backfire magic mucking it up further." Vlad pointed out abruptly.

Desiree pressed her lips together, she could feel herself quickly losing her patience with the hybrid. Vlad wasn't normally this harsh with his banter, she could tell something had annoyed him.

"My magic doesn't always backfire…" She mumbled in defence.

"Oh does it not?" Vlad asked sarcastically. He then smiled at Desiree, "What about the time I wished you would leave? You did leave…only to appear five seconds later!"

Desiree couldn't help but laugh. "Don't try to tell me you didn't get what you wanted."

"I suppose." Vlad mused, "After all, who needs more than five seconds of peace and quiet anyway?"

Desiree smiled at Vlad. There was the wit she loved to hear, no one could make her laugh the way Vlad could.

Just as Desiree felt she was starting to get Vlad in a good mood, she scowled as a loud thud interrupted them. The two of them turned their heads to see that the infamous hunting ghost, Skulker, was now standing in their presence.

"Good evening, Skulker." Vlad greeted his worthy ally casually, lifting his drink again. "What brings you by so late?"

Desiree spoke no words to Skulker, but her dark expression said it all; she did not care for the hunter, nor did the hunter care for her. It made things difficult since both ghosts were on an allied basis with Plasmius.

Their distaste for one another began a few decades ago. Desiree had encountered Skulker whilst he was on a haunt for a rare item lost deep in the elapsed realms of the Ghost Zone. Skulker had been tracking it for months, finding and following old maps and myths in the hope that he would be able to finally claim it. Desiree came across him in a rather frustrated state, so when she asked him he wanted naturally he replied' _'I want to find this stupid bloody artefact!'_ and threw a balled piece of paper at her with an accurate sketch of the item on it. Desiree looked at the picture and smiled.

" _So you have wished it, so it shall be…"_

Skulker became engulfed in a cloud of smoke. When it cleared he found himself in an old tomb. Skulker had no clue where he had been transported to, certainly nowhere he'd ever explored. Cursing the genie ghost, he looked around his new surroundings more closely. It was then he saw it. The beautiful ancient artefact which he had heard so many rumours about, had dreamed of possessing for himself for many months, was there; perched on an old marble pillar just a few feet in front of him. Skulker ran up and snatched it. He quickly shot around to deal with any protectors or booby-traps. But none appeared. The hunter moved fast to leg it out of the tomb. He was surprised when at the entrance of the tomb he saw...daylight? The hunter stopped in his tracks when he saw humans, lots of them. Many of them spotted him quickly and started screaming and running. Skulker looked around and realised he was stood in the middle of a human amusement park! He looked more closely at the 'artefact' and realised he was holding a plastic look alike!

Humiliated with the fact that he had been fooled into 'discovering' a human amusement attraction, Skulker had returned to the Ghost Zone in a very foul mood. He soon located Desiree and the two had heated words, which then developed into a heated combat. A combat in which Skulker, a proud and well trained hunter, came out on top. Content that they were now even, Skulker left the genie and thought no more about the incident. It was not uncommon for ghosts to fight and argue on a regular basis with one another, however, Desiree was extremely well known to hold a grudge…

So now Desiree was perched rather regally on Vlad's desk, not willing to make the hunter's visit a pleasant one. Skulker was already uncomfortable, he hated confronting this ghost. She always had to have things her way. Skulker had come to the conclusion that she was little more than a spoilt brat. Thankfully he never had to deal with her directly regarding his tasks. He concluded that he came to see Vlad regarding important business, and that what exactly what he was going to do. The genie was not going to be a hindrance to him again.

"Plasmius." Skulker greeted his employer, "Would it be possible to have a word… _privately_?" He emphasised the last word and looked directly at Desiree, who pulled a face of disgust.

Vlad held his breathe. He had hoped Skulker wouldn't request this, it was difficult enough to encourage the genie to leave on the best of terms. But knowing how much she despised the hunter, he knew she wouldn't leave without disrupting the peace.

"Desiree," Vlad said calmly, "I would like to have a private word with Skulker. I'll see you again soon, yes?"

"What harm is it if I stay?" Desiree retorted airily, not looking Vlad in the eye.

"For God's sake!" Skulker growled, "I am here as a matter of business, you are here to waste time. So why don't you beat it and go haunt a well or a water fountain, you old mage!"

"Why you!" Desiree roared, her red eyes and hands burning.

"Desiree, please!" Vlad interrupted, "Don't make me wish you away." He said more softly.

"There's an idea." Skulker sneered, "Why don't you do everyone a favour and wish her permanently deaf and blind!"

Desiree held a long cold glare directed at the hunter. She then turned to Vlad and asked formally, "You wish me to leave?"

Vlad smiled at her, "For now. But don't be a stranger."

Vlad thought he saw a trace of a smirk on Desiree's face before she vanished in a puff of purple smoke, little did he know how much his last few words meant to her, and the great relief she felt when she heard them.

He shook his head fondly and smiled at Skulker, who was scowling with distaste.

"Why do you entertain her, Plasmius? She is nothing but a disaster waiting to happen, I don't trust her." Skulker stated firmly to his employer.

"Desiree is harmless, Skulker." Vlad replied placidly, "You just have to know how to play her game. And I do not _'entertain'_ anyone." He added firmly. "Now then, what is this 'business' which requires my private ear, hm?"

"It's a rather serious matter." Skulker began, as he eyed Vlad who was happily downing the last drops of his bourbon. "You know the two ghost hunters from Amity Park, don't you?"

Vlad swallowed his drink bitterly, and a frown fell on his face. "I know _of_ them." He replied casually. "Why?"

Skulker paused for a moment, unsure how to broach the issue with his employer. He'd noticed that Vlad's demeanour had become sullen to the reference regarding the Fenton's. He squeezed his already clutched fist and continued.

"Have you heard any news about them recently?" Skulker probed, "Anything…noteworthy?"

Vlad sighed irritably, "Skulker what is this all about? Has word got out about the Fenton's attempt to build a portal?"

If word spread in the Ghost Zone that the two ghost hunters from Amity Park were building a portal which directly linked the dimensions, there would be an uprising. Some ghosts might panic, others might attack. There could also be attempts to leave the Ghost Zone more often, or permanently. This would create a problem for Vlad, as he also had an access portal. One which he tried hard to keep very secure and private.

"No." Skulker answered, then he paused for a few seconds. Only those who worked for Vlad were aware of the Fenton's activities, under Vlad's orders. "Not yet anyway."

"And why would it? It's not like the Fenton's are going to finish it anyway." Vlad said bitterly.

Skulker raised his eyebrows, surprised at Vlad's certainty. "How are you so sure?" He queried.

Vlad leaned against his desk and frowned at the hunter, his patience wearing thin.

"Because Skulker, and I think you know this, but regardless. The Fenton's son got killed recently in an accident involving that very portal." Vlad stated coldly. "Now, is there a point to any of this?"

"That's how he died?" Skulker blurted out in surprise.

"Ah, I knew were playing dumb." Vlad smirked, "So, why so curious about the Fenton's, or more specifically, their son?"

Skulker bent his elbow and looked at the fist he'd been clutching since he had departed from his island.

"Now that I know all the information I have is correct, there's something I think you'll want to see." Skulker answered with a serious tone.

Skulker dropped a small purple cube onto the floor between Vlad and himself. It quickly expanded to show that it was a large ghost proof container, which was entrapping a young unconscious ghost boy who lay on his side facing away from Masters.

The hybrid glanced at the cube and then looked at Skulker's solemn face. Vlad raised an eyebrow and pulled a confused expression.

"You thought I'd want to a teenaged ghost boy?" Vlad asked his employee sarcastically.

Skulker's eyes widened with seriousness. "Don't you recognise him?" Skulker demanded. The hunter kicked the cube hard so the ghost inside jolted and tipped on to his back, giving Vlad a better view. "It's him, Plasmius. It's the ghost hunters' kid, he turned up in the Ghost Zone earlier today."

Vlad leaned down to take a look at the boy. He closely examined his features and tried to make a connection. Did this ghost really look like the boy that had appeared in his spy footage, or the Christmas letters? Not that Vlad had ever looked closely at him in either, in fact he tore up the letters almost immediately upon opening them.

He realistically hadn't given Jack and Maddie's son much thought, or their daughter for that matter. They were just two extras in the big picture. Vlad did recall one thing which had crossed his mind some time ago, Maddie's son had black hair and blue eyes. Just like Jack. Just like himself too, before the accident. But the boy had softer features and was a smaller build. Vlad believed he was more like Maddie. Or he'd hoped so for the boy's sake, his sister too as a matter of fact in a brief moment of pondering. After a few seconds Vlad sighed and stood up straight again. He looked at his employee, and shook his head.

"Skulker, there is no way that we can know for certain if this is the ghost of Maddie and Jack's dead son." Vlad concluded, "From memory I can say that this ghost has maybe one or two resemblances to the boy, but not enough to firmly identify him. It's ludicrous! No ghost can be linked to a living person, their appearances change when they die…Even look at me. No human would see Plasmius and claim that he and Masters are one and the same.

Skulker remained silent as Vlad looked at the boy again. He couldn't believe how quick he had been to dismiss the theory. Ember had claimed the boy had only noticed a change in his eyes and hair when he saw himself. And right now his eyes were closed! Had Vlad even picked up on that?

"Take the poor child back to the Ghost Zone, Skulker." Vlad said suddenly, "He has enough to come to terms with right now without you creating more confusion for him."

Vlad began to walk to the door. Having the intention of leaving Skulker to deal with the ghost child, and pouring himself another alcoholic beverage.

"Plasmius wait!" Skulker commanded, blocking the doorway. "You don't know everything yet."

Vlad frowned at his employee, twirling his empty glass impatiently in his hand. "I know you're getting on my last nerve." He warned.

"Please listen," Skulker pleaded, "I wouldn't have brought him here if I thought it would be a waste of your time."

Masters waited. He was still frowning, though seemingly giving his employee permission to continue.

"The kid was new into the Ghost Zone today. Ember said he accidentally knocked into her when trying to escape Walker. He didn't know what happened or where he was. When she explained what happened to him he didn't believe her. She thought he was in denial, anyone would. But Plasmius, he was able to give Ember a full account of who he is, he remembers his life!"

Vlad's jaw dropped, struggling to process such unheard of information. "That's impossible."

"It's not." Skulker continued. "He was able to tell her his name, age, where he lived, the names of his sister and friends, even where he went to school for crying out loud! But most importantly he gave his parents' names; Jack and Maddie Fenton."

Vlad turned around, leaned down, and peered into the cube where the ghost boy lay. Could it be a coincidence? The timing seemed too perfect. And how could the young ghost possibly make up such accurate information? What was going on?

Skulker grew unsure and impatient with Vlad's silence. "Come on Plasmius! You know it could be true. Just look at him, I know the only difference you can see right now is his hair! And in case you didn't notice, he's unconscious! Don't you remember? Ghosts can't be knocked unconscious, we've already been knocked dead!"

"Nonsense!" Vlad snapped, "I've knocked ghosts out before, many times. I've even been knocked out myself a time or two in my earlier days."

"No Plasmius, ghosts can't be knocked unconscious." Skulker stated knowingly, "I thought you knew, we can be stunned for a few minutes, which can sometimes appear as unconsciousness but that's all it is. You're the only one who I've known to be knocked unconscious, and that's because…you're still half human."

Vlad stood again and looked Skulker dead in the eye. "Are you saying…You think he's like me?" He whispered.

"I don't know what he is." The hunter sighed despairingly, "He's an even bigger anomaly than you are."

"He is a ghost though Skulker, that much is certain. They're burying his dead body tomorrow morning. If he were half ghost like me, his body would be still be pumping blood and breathing oxygen, and it's not." Vlad mused, "Perhaps we're making a bigger deal out of this than what's necessary. Perhaps the only anomaly here is the fact that he died and became the only ghost who was blessed with his memories and there's no more to it."

"No more to it?" Skulker cried out, "How can you say that?"

"Tell me Skulker, what is more fascinating to you? The fact that we now have a young ghost who still obtains his identity and memories, or because you could abuse the fact that he is related to two loathed ghost hunters?" Vlad queried formally, raising his eyebrows accusingly at his ally.

"Alright Plasmius, you got me." Skulker admitted, as he looked down at the ghost boy and drummed his metallic fingers off the cubed cage. "You cannot deny that having this brat in our hands gives us great leverage."

"How do you mean?" Vlad inquired.

"Well don't you see? We can use him as bait, threaten his afterlife to force his vile ghost hunting parents to back off…Maybe even finish them off!" Skulker grinned menacingly.

Vlad sighed impatiently and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Dear Lord Skulker, are you really that dense?"

Skulker frowned in confusion at his employer's response to his suggestion. "What's the problem?" He demanded.

"The obvious problem is his parents are ghost hunters." Vlad emphasised, "You wave that boy in their faces it'll be like a red flag to a bull. They will not see their son no matter what gets said, they will see a ghost, and as such they will treat him as they will treat any other ghost: like putrid scum."

Skulker mused over Vlad's response for a few seconds, all excitement which had previously been in his demeanour was now drained. "Do you really think that?"

"No doubt." Vlad answered flatly.

Skulker banged the cube with some authority with his fists. "Damn!" He hissed, angry that his plot had been justly flawed by Masters.

Vlad watched the boy as Skulker had banged the cube, he thought he seen him stir slightly. The hunter merely glared down at him, as though it were his fault.

"Guess I better take him back now." he grumbled, "There are plenty of empty rocks floating around for him to occupy."

Vlad turned his head sharply towards Skulker, "You can't take him back!" he sneered, "You'll do no such thing!"

Skulker, who was taken aback by his employer's tone, became conflicted, "Why not? You told me to take him back a few minutes ago. Before I told you who he was, what's changed?"

"Skulker, please think before you speak." Vlad scoffed, "What was Ember's response when she learned the identity of this ghost?"

"She…she tried to waste him." Skulker responded.

"I gathered as much. Which is exactly what every other ghost who has been confronted or victimised by the Fenton's will do if they find out he is their son." Vlad confirmed. "It is too dangerous for him in the Ghost Zone. He can't go back there. I bet that you're even tempted by the thought of terrorising the son of two ghost hunters."

Skulker frowned at Masters, and didn't deny his last sentence, but what in the world was he suggesting? "You want to keep the whelp?" Skulker mocked.

Vlad scowled at the laughable accusation. "What? No of course I don't want to keep him, the little retch!" He denied with an over-the-top tone. "But I don't want to see him get unjustly wasted either. It's hardly his fault his parents' occupation involves ghost genocide, is it?"

Skulker rolled his eyes. Sometimes he wondered if Vlad Plasmius was really as dark as he alleged to be. "What are you going to do?"

Vlad gathered his thoughts for a moment. He couldn't just take in Jack Fenton's brat! But he also couldn't let Maddie's son venture around in the Ghost Zone, alone and defenceless. He felt the horrid confliction in his brain mock him.

"Plasmius?" Skulker probed.

Vlad looked at Skulker, then at the boy, then at Skulker again. Before giving his proposal.

"Perhaps…Perhaps I can offer to teach him how to be a ghost." Vlad concluded, "Yes…train him up on his powers, and once he's learned how to defend himself I'll send the little badger on his merry way back to the Ghost Zone and he'll never darken my doorway again."

"And then he'll be fair game for the likes of me!" Skulker declared, only half-jokingly. The Fenton's had also stung him, more than once. Skulker was a vengeful ghost, revenge was always a good tasting dish.

Vlad smirked at his friend's humour, "Naturally, Skulker." He agreed falsely, "So, why don't you disable this fine caging device of yours and I'll take it from here, hm?"

"No problem, Plasmius." Skulker complied, unfastening the cube so within seconds Danny lay only on the cold stone floor. "Just one thing, before I leave," Skulker leered, honing in on Vlad, "Are you going to do this out of compassion for a newly lost potential half ghost whelp, or love for that ghost hunting female?"

Skulker narrowed his eyes at Masters. He was aware that his employer had had a brief history with the Fenton's, only he didn't know fully what it entailed or how far their friendship had gone...particularly with the female. He had always been a little guarded of Plasmius for this reason. Now he was taking in the ghost hunters' son…Skulker was beginning to re-question where his ally's loyalties lay. He was not willing to put himself at risk for Plasmius' past, or this whelp.

Vlad looked Skulker straight in the eye, he could tell the ghost was troubled by all of this and he knew why. He knew only the truth would absolve it. "His mother was…my friend in college." Vlad confided, "I know she has wronged you and many others, but she was a good woman and still is. It's Jack Fenton who is pulling her down to low levels. She did not deserve to lose her son like this, and the boy had nothing to do with their ghost hunting. He doesn't deserve a cruel fate because of it."

Deciding that's all Skulker needed to know, Vlad ended his quick explanation and hoped the hunter would accept it. He now feared that Skulker had sensed that Vlad didn't sound as certain or overly sincere about eventually 'sending the boy on his merry way' into the Ghost Zone. In less than a minute Vlad was already reviewing the situation in his own mind.

But Skulker lowered his head, not particularly liking this new information Vlad had shared. But he nodded, implying his basic understanding. He decided he knew Vlad too long and well enough for this suspicious information to be appropriate to end their alliance and have Plasmius become a threat to him.

"Fine. I just hope you know what you're doing." The mechanical ghost mumbled before taking his leave.

Vlad sighed, praying that his alliance with the skilled hunter had not been jeopardised. He tried to shake it from his mind and turned his attention to the ghost boy who lay unconscious on his floor. In order to physically help the boy, Vlad had to turn into a ghost himself, as his human hands would faze right through him. Once the black rings appeared and vanished, completing the transformation, Plasmius kneeled down and slowly picked the boy up. Once he was secured by one arm supporting his legs and the other cradling his shoulders and head, Plasmius turned intangible and slowly flew upwards. He landed softly in a bedroom on the second story of the castle-like mansion. It was one of Vlad's many spare bedrooms.

He walked across the room and placed the boy on the bed. Plasmius hoped that if the boy was more comfortable he wouldn't regain his consciousness yet, and would sleep right through until morning. Sleep. Another thing that didn't apply to ghosts very often. The hybrid hoped that this was another factor which wouldn't apply to this abnormal ghost. As he took a spare blanket out of the closest and draped it over the boy, he wondered what the odds were of the unstable new ghost not fazing the blanket off during the night. Or fazing himself right through the bed for that matter…

Content that he could do nothing more to keep the boy more safe and comfortable, Plasmius reverted to his human form. He sat on the edge of bed next to the boy and studied him for a few more seconds.

"Daniel Fenton." He whispered to the sleeping form, "What am I going to do with you?"

 **()()()**

 **Hope you all enjoyed this slightly longer chapter. Up next we will see further unfolding's, and the first interactions between Danny and Vlad. Next update in a few days, as promised! Don't forget to review and tell me your thoughts!**

 **xseriouslyx**


	4. Anger, more anger, and confusion

Jazz sat by her bedroom window and looked out thoughtfully, as tears trickled down her face. She observed as the last few of her distant relatives scurried quickly into their cars, to avoid the heavy rain. Jazz sighed heavily with relief as she watched them pull away. Things had been hard enough on her and her parents without people they hardly knew, or remembered, loitering about longer than necessary, forcing them all to put on a brave face. Jazz had dismissed herself from the wake about an hour ago. She needed to be alone.

She was really struggling to accept the fact that they would be burying her baby brother the next day. More tears dropped from her eyes as she thought of Danny, knowing that she'll never laugh with or nag at him ever again. They had always stuck together and looked out for each other, now she was alone.

Jazz hadn't spoken to either of her parents since the accident. She fully blamed them for her brother's death and she made her views and anger known to them. Why did they think it was acceptable to leave three teenagers alone around such dangerous tools and machinery?

But she also blamed herself. If Jazz had been there she could have prevented it. Why did she always have to put her studies first? Because of it she failed to protect her brother, a task she was told she would do well right from the age of two, when Danny had been born. She had always taken that responsibility very seriously. More serious than most other older siblings as a matter of fact. But that didn't change the circumstances.

Jazz hadn't even realised something had gone wrong that day, she had been too engrossed on her essay. She had heard no noise or commotion. Well, there was always noise and commotion in the house, but she had gotten so used to it and had always assumed it was just another aspect of her parents' career choice. It was only when the blaring ambulance sirens halted outside of her house, her focus became averted. As she had ran down the stairs to see what had happened, she hoped it had been something minor. Such as her dad's negligence caused him to blow off his thumb or something.

She darted into the lab and halted when she saw everyone. Tucker was crying, so was Sam, who was also shaking and clutching Tucker's sleeve. Jazz's mother was hysterical, screaming 'No' repetitively, her father was trying to calm her, and was preventing her advances at the portal. But he also looked incredibly grave, and it sounded as though he was holding back sobs himself.

Jazz ran over to them, frantically demanding an explanation. She then looked into the portal where the paramedics where working. She gasped, horrified to see that they were in the process of closing her little brother inside a body bag.

Without hesitation, Jazz bolted into portal and grabbed the paramedic who was touching her brother by their arm. _'Stop! What are doing?'_ She'd shouted at him. Jack had tried to call her back, but his pleas fell on deaf ears. The paramedic had looked at her in sympathy, and could only offer his condolences.

Jazz started screaming as she looked at her brother's still body and came to the realisation that he was dead. One of the paramedics had to forcefully remove her, as her father was still attempting to console Maddie. In the end, she had subdued and was sobbing loudly into his shoulder, and he had to keep a firm hold on Jazz in order to let the paramedics finish their morbid task.

Tucker had watched the horrific display and gently tugged Sam's arm. ' _We need to go.'_ He whispered regretfully, but sensibly, knowing the Fenton's should be left alone. He was also feeling it was also becoming too difficult for him. Sam looked at him in shock, she didn't want to leave. Tucker began to pull her away easily, as they took there leave.

' _I'm sorry, I'm sorry!_ ' Sam had called repeatedly in a frantic manner. But her cries remained unheard by all except Tucker. The remaining Fenton's were watching in horror as the paramedics began to carry their youngest member away in a body bag.

Jazz shivered as she recalled the dreadful event, a sob escaping her. She continued to wonder if she could have done anything different, thinking of ways she could have stopped it. Then there was a gentle knock on the door.

"Jazz?" Her father called gently.

"Go away!" Jazz shouted back instantly.

"Jazz please," Jack pleaded, "come downstairs. We should be together."

Jazz pounced off the window ledge and stormed across her room, yanking the door wide open to show her downcast father standing on the other side.

"I don't want to be with either of you!" Jazz hissed bitterly, "This is all your fault, Danny is dead because of you!"

Jack breathed in shakily. He knew his daughter was incredibly upset, but he couldn't bear the thought of believing if any of the hateful things she was saying was true.

"Please don't say that sweetheart." He whispered, "What happened to Danny…was horrible. But it was an accident. Please come and be with your mother and me, we need each other to get through this."

"Where were you when Danny ever needed you?" Jazz spat at him, "Building idiotic inventions which eventually killed him!"

Jack held back a sob. He felt guilty enough, he couldn't stand to have Jazz hate them like this. She was all they had left now. In losing one child, had he indirectly lost the other? Before he could respond to Jazz's accusation, she slammed the door loudly in his face.

"You're despicable people, you practically killed your own son!" She yelled from inside her room.

Jack sighed heavily, quickly wiping away the tears forming in his eyes. He made his way back down the stairs, and looked sadly at his wife who was holding a picture of her and Danny which had been taken when he was a small child. Maddie stared endlessly at the picture. As Jack saw the tears dripping down her face, he could have sworn the pain he was feeling was his heart physically breaking in half.

 **()()()**

Inside the Ghost Zone, on the hunter's island, Skulker was currently dealing with a confrontation with Ember. The ghost diva had been irritated with her boyfriend for delaying her attempt at wasting the brat of the two most despised ghost hunters from Amity Park. However, she had abandoned her attack when Skulker had convinced her of a more satisfying arrangement, if she'd let him take the ghost and allow him to remain un-wasted for a little while longer. An arrangement on which he did not deliver.

Needless to say, Ember was furious.

"What do you mean he won't go through with it?" Ember demanded, her hair 'burning' wildly.

She was referring to Skulker's hopes that Vlad Plasmius would play along with his idea of using Danny as bait to snare the Fenton's…and kill them. Of course, Skulker had never for one minute considered the possibility of Plasmius taking the whelp in. He assumed the worst case scenario would be the plan failing. In which case he and Ember would still have some satisfaction in wasting the kid. He was extremely dismayed with the fact that Plasmius canned his idea at once. But he was completely blown over when Plasmius confirmed that he wanted to keep the boy short term, and train him up on ghostly matters.

The whole situation still didn't sit right with Skulker. He knew that if it had been any other ghost kid Plasmius would have simply declared he make his own luck out in the Ghost Zone. Why was he making the Fenton kid an exception? If Skulker didn't know and trust Plasmius as well as he did he would have become very hostile with him. But Skulker and Plasmius had been scratching each other's back for many years, and there had never once any been consequences or reason for them to question their alliance. If Skulker was anything, he was a loyal ghost to those he felt had earned it. So he decided to give Plasmius a chance with his risky and questionable decision, even if he didn't fully understand it.

And it was now creating complications with Ember.

"You told me that if I let you take that ghost boy to that pretentious half-ghost we could have a chance at finally taking out those idiot ghost hunters once and for all! And now you're telling me I don't get to waste any of them?" She shrieked angrily.

Skulker sighed. Trying to explain the matter without undermining Plasmius' status was proving to be very difficult.

"That's not what I'm saying." Skulker answered calmly, "Yes, the prospect of using the whelp to attack the Fenton's has gone bust, but that was my mistake not Plasmius' doing…I miscalculated the situation. But it doesn't mean you can't take another shot at the ghost boy. He should be fair game soon enough."

"He was fair game yesterday!" Ember snapped, "Why did you let Plasmius keep him? What's he up to this time?"

"I can't say I know fully what he's doing." Skulker replied carefully, "But he assured me that what he's planning is a short term arrangement and we can have our way with him once the brat is back in the Ghost Zone again."

"How nice of Plasmius to give his permission." Ember sneered, angry because the half ghost had snatched her prey away from her without giving her satisfaction. "What's he doing in the meantime, training the dipstick up to be his little minion? Like he doesn't have enough morons running around for him already. No offence."

Skulker was silent for a moment, not even responding to the fact that Ember had just implied that he was a minion and a moron. Ember's angry blunder made him begin to wonder if Plasmius actually was intending to train the boy up to have him serve him. Similar to all of Plasmius' other alliances, such as Fright Knight, Skulker knew that meant in terms of prey, the whelp would be officially off the table. As attacking a fellow 'ally' was simply not done.

So had Plasmius lied to him last night? Could that be his true intention? Surely Plasmius didn't expect Skulker to idly watch as the Fenton's son roamed the Ghost Zone care freely? He couldn't do it, justice had to be given!

"Skulker!" Ember yelled, regaining his attention.

Skulker scowled at her. "I don't know what Plasmius' full intentions are, Ember! But I know I can trust his word. If he said we will get our chance with the ghost boy then we will."

"We'd better!" Ember hissed before she haughtily pounced off, leaving Skulker alone.

He was relieved, Ember seemed to have taken the news well. Well by her standards at least. Normally an argument with her was never ending, but it appeared she'd be fine once she cooled off. Skulker knew if any other ghost currently had Danny in their possession, Ember would take her chances and have it out with them in order to have her victory. However, he knew that Ember was aware of just how manipulative and powerful Plasmius is, and that she would be foolish to challenge him.

Skulker didn't really get what Ember's deal was anyway. He knew of one time when the Fenton's had defeated her. Although it is a pain, he didn't think it would be enough to push her to waste someone. Ember was capable of causing great damage and bodily harm, but wasting somebody was an entire different ballgame, and Ember had never done it before. Most ghosts had not, it required a great deal of justification or heartlessness on the killer's part. For Ember to have come so close, she must have felt extreme justice was required. Skulker came to the conclusion that perhaps Ember must have felt she was on the right track to enable 'moving on' when the Fenton's attacked her. Now she wanted to take her fury out on their dead son.

Skulker could also admit that he too felt the urge to waste the brat simply because of who his parents were. He hoped his new theory about Plasmius' objectives was wrong. He was glad he had convinced Ember that everything would work out in their favour, now he had to do the same for himself.

 **()()()**

Unknown to any of his family and friends, Danny had actually 'wakened' on the morning of his funeral, in a grand castle out in Wisconsin.

Listening to the soft rain outside, he moved his eyes around the unfamiliar area in which he had woken up, and realised he was in a luxurious bedroom, and in a very comfortable bed. So did that mean…had all that stuff with the ghosts just been some crazy dream? Danny sat up on the bed. If it was, then where was he? The last thing he remembered before the ordeal with the ghosts was being with Sam and Tucker in his parent's lab. Either event did not explain how Danny got to this room.

He stood up, and realised he was still wearing the black hazmat suit. Not a good sign. He walked over to the dresser and gazed into the grand Victorian mirror. He inhaled deeply when he saw his reflection was still the sporting snow white hair and glowing green eyes which he had in his 'dream'. Which meant it hadn't been a dream at all.

"Great." Danny mumbled grimly to himself, "Still a 'ghost'."

Danny took a few steps back and sat on the edge of the bed. He didn't really believe all that stuff, did he? Was what Ember had said been true? Did he really die? Was he really a ghost? And how the hell did he get here when the last thing that Danny could recall from that strange encounter was Ember attempting to 'waste' him on some creepy ghost jungle island? Danny needed answers, and he was not going to get them by sitting on a bed.

He walked to the door and opened it. He looked down the hall and discovered how big and grand the place was. Danny paced up the hall. He was hoping if he could find someone, they could explain what was going on. He peered into rooms with open doors only to find them empty, and he knocked on the doors which were closed, not receiving any response.

After doing this on two separate floors, the only thing Danny found was learning that whoever lived here had expensive taste. As he walked the down the stairs to the ground floor he noted that it was much more spacious, meaning fewer rooms to inspect. The smell of bacon suddenly hit him and his stomach growled loudly, reminding him that he hadn't eaten in a really long time! He followed the smell which led him to an impressive dining room.

At the top end of the dining table sat a middle-aged man, with long white-grey hair which was sophistically tied back; he was dressed in a striking black suit and reading a newspaper. Danny peered curiously at the man, did he know him? As the man turned a page in his paper he glanced in Danny's direction, and put his paper down when he saw the boy.

Vlad Masters smiled confidently at Danny, "Good morning, Daniel." He greeted him, outreaching his arm to indicate the boy take a seat.

Danny timidly walked a few steps closer to the man, not taking his eyes off him. How did he know his name? And weren't most humans afraid of ghosts? Assuming that Danny now really was one? Who was this man? Danny stopped next to the chair Vlad had offered him, but did not sit down.

"You know my name?" Danny asked, suspicious as he did not know who he was. Although he did look vaguely familiar.

"Yes I do." Vlad stated, outreaching his hand to the boy. "Vlad Masters."

Danny cautiously took the man's hand and slowly shook it. Vlad's hand was more firm.

"Please, sit." Vlad said, as he took his hand away and lifted his cup of coffee, causally taking a sip.

As Danny pulled out the chair and slowly sat down, he made a realisation.

"Wait. Vlad Masters?" Danny repeated.

He recalled that name, and remembered seeing Vlad's face on some business magazine ages ago. And was he wrong, or was there a connection between that same business tycoon and some old college buddy of his mom and dad.

"Aren't you some high-top billionaire?" Danny asked abruptly.

Vlad chuckled at the boy. "In a sense. But that's not important right now, is it?"

Danny pressed his lips together. Vlad was right, he had more concerning matters to address ahead of the fact he was sat at a dining table with the richest man in the country.

"How do you know my name?" Danny asked guardedly, unsure of his first impressions of this 'billionaire.'

"Hm. It was the name given on your Christening invitation." Vlad replied knowingly. "Daniel James to be precise, but we'll not worry about the finer details."

Danny's eyes widened. "You were at my Christening?"

Why would a billionaire have been present at Danny's Christening? Unless…there is a connection between the billionaire and the old college buddy. This guy had to be the same person.

"No, unfortunately. But maybe now you feel a little more content with how I know you?" Vlad queried.

"You were my dad's friend in college." Danny answered, relaxing a little in his chair.

If this guy had been friends with Jack, then he must be harmless. Right? Danny thought that his mom had also been friendly with Vlad Masters, or 'Vladdie', as his dad fondly called him sometimes, but she rarely commented when Jack mentioned him, and she never brought up the topic of him herself. Odd.

Vlad glowered slightly at being thought of as Jack Fenton's 'friend'. But he did not correct Danny. And the boy didn't notice the man's fast passing expression of disgust.

"Yeah, dad's mentioned you a couple of times I think. Said you two were in some band or something."

Danny smirked slightly at making the reference to the incredibly cringe-worthy 'Skunk Punks.' Vlad took another sip of his coffee, he certainly cringed at the memory. He eyed the boy next to him and wondered bitterly if he was always this quick tongued…Would this be a problem?

"But I don't think I've ever met you before." Danny continued, "How do you know me? And…and how did I get here?" He blurted, remembering that this was all a serious blank.

"Well…" Vlad slowly began, choosing his lies carefully, "I've seen your picture in your mother's Christmas letters."

"Did I have white hair and green eyes in them too?" Danny asked sarcastically, not certain about how truthful the billionaire was being.

"Indeed you did not." Vlad answered grimly. He did not answer what had been the boy's second question. Danny saw that Masters had almost a 'knowing twinkle' in his eye.

Before Danny could continue to bombard Vlad with questions, he felt a cold shiver tingle in his body and gasped when a blue-ish ghost, who appeared to be a servant, floated quickly into the room from the adjacent kitchen carrying two plates. Danny visibly jumped when he saw the ghost, his eyes fixated on him immediately. Vlad smirked at Danny's reaction to the little ghost whom he employed. Was it fear? Clearly Danny had not had good first impressions of ghosts. The servant silently placed the two plates filled with cooked breakfasts in front of Vlad and Danny and quickly floated back into the kitchen.

Danny's mouth dropped open, perplexed by what he had just saw. He turned his focus to Vlad again, who was still smirking. It seemed fairly obvious by his reaction that Danny had never clasped eyes on a ghost before yesterday, and he clearly wasn't fond of them either! Danny remained silent as he stared at the man. Why had a ghost just served him and Vlad Masters their breakfasts? Danny didn't think he had been more confused in his life. Even math wasn't this complex!

Vlad gingerly picked up his knife and fork. "Eat." He said to Danny, "We will still have plenty to discuss after breakfast."

 **()()()**

 **Hi everyone, now I will admit this chapter was a bit of a filler, and there probably wasn't as much action and story development as I would have liked. However, I felt these little details were necessary, so to make up for a slightly boring chapter I shall update the next chapter much sooner than the previous ones. That being said, I still hope you are all enjoying the story so far, and thanks for staying with it, please don't forget to review!**

 **xseriouslyx**


	5. Deadly Deals and Remorse

**Hi everyone, so here is another chapter for you, updated more quickly as promised! Slightly longer than the previous chapter so get stuck in, hope you enjoy!**

 **()()()**

After they had finished their breakfasts, Vlad beckoned Danny to follow him down into his personal lab. In the short time he'd sat in his presence, Danny had already become wary of the billionaire. Not just because he had random ghost servants, but he also seemed all-knowing. At least that was how he portrayed himself, Vlad was clearly a confident man. Danny had gathered this from listening to the phone calls Vlad had made to his companies over breakfast, for which the man had apologised to Danny for his lack of table manners, however his financial businesses also needed to be attended to. Vlad had firmly told his secretaries and business partners that he was taking personal leave for the foreseeable future. He made his expectations regarding his complex businesses abundantly clear, and he showed little concern for the recipients' distresses regarding his sudden decision about time on leave. Danny assumed that Vlad must be a very clever and manipulative man, who knew how to make sure he got his way. This raised alarm bells for Danny, but right now there was little he could do about it.

Danny held his breath, wondering why on earth Vlad wanted him to go into his basement. As if the fact he lived in a castle all alone wasn't creepy enough, when the man turned on the lights Danny gasped when he saw that Vlad had a lab, not unlike his parents' one at Fenton Works. Was he some sort of mad scientist? The sort of mad scientist from that movie who had frightened Danny when he was small? Vlad smiled to himself as he waited for Danny's verbal response.

"What is this place?" Danny pondered out loud, a tone of wariness clear in his voice.

"You have quite an interestingly surprised reaction to my laboratory given that your parents are ghost hunters." Vlad teased him subtly.

Danny looked at him with wide eyes. Did that mean?

"You're…you're a ghost hunter too Mr. Masters?" Danny stammered.

That explanation, though strange as it may be, would certainly explain all the unusual equipment and the ghost servants. Although it didn't bode too well for Danny, given his current bodily state. Perhaps Vlad was a kinder ghost hunter, who wasn't interested in _'ripping them apart molecule by molecule!'_

However, Vlad laughed at Danny's outrageous assumption.

"No my boy, I am not a ghost hunter." Vlad chuckled, whilst appearing to inspect one of his gadgets, "But I do know the plight of being pursued by one…" He said in a low voice.

The lab was silent for a few seconds. Danny had only given Vlad yet another look of confusion. Vlad's eyes locked on him as he allowed two black rings to appear around his torso. Danny stared, horrified as he watched the rings transform Vlad's appearance. When the rings vanished it was as though a whole different being was stood before him. 'Vlad' now wearing a white suit complimented with black boots and belt, set off with a flowing collared white cape with a red inner lining. The man himself now had curved black hair, pale blue skin, and pupil-less red eyes.

He was quite a frightening sight. Danny found himself taking a few steps away from the startling creature. He quickly came to the conclusion that there was only one reason why someone would look like this.

"You're a ghost!" Danny cried.

Plasmius' smirk never left his face. "Well done, Daniel." He said sardonically, "Don't look so afraid, you are one yourself now you know."

"How can you be a ghost?" Danny wailed despairingly. He felt like he was going crazy, and his confusion was overwhelming him. He began to quickly pace around and was thrusting his arms in the air. "And how do you know I'm a ghost? I don't even know properly if I'm a ghost…And where the hell even I'm I?"

Irritated by Danny's panicked response, Plasmius quickly advanced on the boy and pinned him against a wall with one hand gripped on his chest to keep him still. If there was one thing he despised it was unstable situations which he could not control. And Danny was certainly unstable at the moment. The boy quietened, but his now more vulnerable position certainly did not help with his anxiety.

"Calm down Daniel!" Plasmius snapped impatiently, "You're in my home in Wisconsin, and you're very lucky you are. Otherwise you would have long ago been wiped from existence, or as our spiritual associates from the Ghost Zone would say; 'wasted.'"

Danny groaned slightly as his back was pressed hard against the cold wall. He decided to stay quiet, as he realised Vlad's demeanour had suddenly become very cold and harsh. Danny began to wonder if this 'ghost' had harmful intentions just like the others.

"Nothing to add?" Plasmius sneered, "Good, then I'll continue. You're shocked to find I'm a ghost, I see. Well let me settle that right now, I am merely half ghost. The only one to ever exist actually. I am known as Vlad Plasmius whilst in my ghost formation. It is quite a bizarre condition, and I have your…father to thank for it." Plasmius scoffed bitterly, trying greatly to avoid using an insulting adjective to describe the boy's father.

Noticing that Danny was incredibly uncomfortable, in more ways than one, Plasmius let go of his suit and allowed him to stand freely. "Only if you be behave." He threatened. He wouldn't think twice about restraining the boy again if necessary.

"What do you mean, 'half ghost?'" Danny demanded, scowling at the hybrid and rubbing his chest. "And what has it got to do with my dad?"

Vlad folded his arms and raised an eyebrow at the boy, amused to see him become so brave and defensive all of a sudden.

"Surely your parents have mentioned an unfortunate 'incident' involving a prototype portal experiment when they were in college?" Vlad queried.

"They were trying to build one and it went wrong." Danny replied vaguely. That was all he knew. "What does that have to do with anything?"

" _I_ was what 'went wrong.'" Vlad answered darkly. "I was helping Jack and Maddie to construct the blasted thing. We were getting close, so one day your overly eager father rushed his calculations and accidently poured diet cola into the ecto-filter instead of ecto-purifier. The prototype overloaded and I got forcefully blasted by ectoplasmic energy. The spectral elements it contained invaded my body and modified my DNA, in a very painful and distressful manner, I assure you. It led to several years of hospitalisation. So for the past twenty years I have had ghost powers, ultimately meaning I am half ghost and half human." Vlad clarified.

Danny gaped open-mouthed at the hybrid. Was he telling the truth? Had his father caused Vlad Masters to obtain ghost powers? Judging by the hybrid's story, it could be believable. Danny knew there had to have been a pretty sinister reason for why his parents had put off re building a portal for so long. Was Vlad's accident the cause? His explanation regarding Jack's role had sounded believable and relatable. Danny had often seen or heard of his father overlooking safety as a result of his enthusiasm.

"But oh, the irony," Vlad continued, "Now he's allowed the same thing to happen to his only son!"

"My dad's done nothing wrong to me!" Danny bit back, "And what happened to you was an accident, get over it."

Vlad glared at the boy. "Get over it? Your father's idiocy robbed me of my college experience, education, and the love of my…social life." He quickly altered, not wanting the boy to know about the feelings he still harboured for his mother.

"Dude, you are a billionaire. I think karma has you covered." Danny unsympathetically responded.

"Money isn't everything, my boy." Vlad said sadly, shaking his head.

"Whatever." Danny replied uncaringly. "Why I'm I here? Do you think when I was inside the portal at home it turned me half ghost like you?" He asked.

"Vlad raised his eyebrows. "I'm afraid not, Daniel." He sighed. "You are very much dead."

Danny's heart sunk. "How do you know?" He asked desperately.

Something wasn't right, Vlad and Ember had to be wrong. He couldn't really be dead. Could he? He prayed there would be a flaw or loophole in Vlad's answer.

"Well, when my DNA was altered, changing me part ghost, my human form still survived. It was as though my dying process stopped halfway through. So my heart still beats, my lungs breath air, and I age. You on the other hand behave and have traits of someone who is still alive, but your physical human body has stopped functioning." Vlad told him outright. "In fact, I believe the burial service of your body is currently in progress around about now."

"What?" Danny cried out in despair. "No, you're wrong! You're lying!" He accused, daringly marching up to the hybrid and staring him in the face.

Vlad sighed with false pity. "I figured you would be holding on to hope or in some sort of denial," he said easily, "So I thought you would want to look at this."

Plasmius walked away and opened one of the metal storage cabinets. He lifted out a newspaper, a popular broadsheet from Amity Park, opened up at a certain page and threw it at Danny. Danny just about caught it. When he looked at the page, he read the headline: _'Tragedy strikes at Fenton Works.'_ Skimming through the article he quickly learned that what Plasmius had told him hadn't been a lie. The white light he could recall from the portal had actually been what had killed him.

Plasmius read the look of horror and fear on Danny's face. He couldn't help but feel somewhat sorry for the boy, even if he was Jack Fenton's son. He wasn't just like any other ghost who died, came to terms with death, and started over with a clean slate. Danny's memories and emotions had remained intact, meaning he would experience a greater loss compared to other ghosts. A similar loss to his family and friends; as he would unlikely interact with them again.

"Quite the scandal, isn't it?" Plasmius mused.

Danny found himself looking at Plasmius, as though he had the answer. Maybe he could change or fix the situation, after all he seemed fairly informed about everything else. Although it seemed wrong and unfair to have to be forced into putting his trust in this stranger.

"What should I do?" Danny asked weakly, trying to hold in his sadness and not quite able to meet the hybrid's gaze.

Plasmius saw this, and smiled slightly upon seeing his plan was unfolding with little difficulty.

"You have had the unfortunate disadvantage of being thrust into the Ghost Zone not only alone, but with many enemies already waiting to personally see to your ultimate demise." Plasmius said knowingly, "You see once the ghosts find out who you are, the son of two ghost hunters, and they will as you have already let it slip to one, whom I know personally to be a blathering diva, they will hunt you down like a cat to a mouse."

Danny began to shake a little and stared fearfully at Plasmius, who was only increasing the boy's anxieties.

"Luckily for you, one of my allies came across you yesterday before the alleged diva was about to finish you off." Plasmius continued. "Being the cunning ghost he is he brought you to me, knowing that I would appreciate the information he had obtained, along with you."

Danny wrapped his arms around himself, and finally got the nerve to look at Plasmius.

"What do you want with me?" Danny mumbled, "To finish me off because of what my dad accidently did to you in college twenty years ago?"

"That would be a little pathetic." Plasmius leered, "Not to mention too easy. On the contrary Daniel, I want to offer you an exchange of services."

"Services?" Danny repeated.

"That's right. You see Daniel, now that you are a ghost you have new abilities, new physical supernatural powers of which you could only dream about as a human." Vlad explained, "Powers and abilities which I have had and been mastering for twenty years now. You are alone and defenceless, I can offer you protection, and teach you everything I know. No ghost would ever touch you again. All I ask in return is your complete loyalty to me. What do you say?"

Danny stared at the hybrid, shocked into silence. It was quite the ultimatum, play puppet to a narcissistic half ghost with a personal grudge, or get completely slaughtered by some other ghost who harboured anger because of his parents. But wasn't there a third option?

"I could go back." Danny said with uncertainty, it nearly sounded as if he was asking a question.

"Excuse me?" Plasmius retorted, confused and surprised that the boy wasn't yet began endlessly thanking him for his generous offer.

"I'm a ghost right? Couldn't I go back to Amity Park and still be with my family and friends? It could be like nothing has really changed." Danny suggested hopingly.

Plasmius smiled at the boy's I idea. "It could be an option. Not a wise one, however." Plasmius stated.

"What do you mean?" Danny asked.

"Well, say you did go back to Amity Park, assuming that you know how to fly there safely, you are a ghost. There's no changing that, and considering your parents are professional ghost hunters…There's a chance it will not end well for you, ' _molecule by molecule.'"_ Plasmius said in a mocking tone.

"They're my parents!" Danny snapped, "They would still want me even if I am a ghost."

"Are you sure about that Daniel?" Plasmius queried, "Would you really bet your afterlife on it? I wouldn't. They probably wouldn't accept you're their son, your appearance has been altered just enough to separate you from the human Daniel Fenton. It's the green eyes that really sell it I think! And let's not forget that even if by some slim chance they did believe you to be their son and resist the urge to tear you to shreds, you would still be putting yourself, and your family at risk, as the Guys In White would be all over you."

"The Guys In White are pathetic!" Danny argued, refusing to give up hope, "And my friends would still help me."

Plasmius sighed, growing impatient. "Yes, The Guys In White are pathetic. But that can be a generalised view about all ghost hunters, it is currently still a taboo career. They can still get the job done when they put their minds to it. And with an inexperienced ghost like yourself, there would be no competition for them." He explained confidently. "As for your friends, Daniel do you even understand what it means to be a ghost? Yes you may be able to vaguely interact with your peers and loved ones from time to time but it would be at sporadic intervals. The technical term used for it is 'haunting'. You would be haunting them, Daniel. Your life has stopped, but theirs will continue to change and develop. By doing what you are suggesting would only prevent them from dealing with the loss of you and preventing them from moving on with their lives."

Danny hung his head in defeat, and shame. He would never want to hurt his family and friends, how could he possibly consider returning if that's what would happen. He simply couldn't put them at risk or create more turmoil.

"Is that what you want, Daniel?" Plasmius asked, with false gentleness. The half ghost was certain he had defeated the last hope Danny was clinging to.

"No." He whispered back. A whisper was all he could muster without his voice sounding husky.

"So what's your decision?" Plasmius probed. "Because do you see that large vault over there?"

Plasmius gestured to a highly secured dome fixed into one of the walls in the lab. It looked hazardous, even though it wasn't active and the barriers were shut. It wasn't unlike the currently unfinished Fenton Portal at Danny's house.

"That is what a finished and fully functioning Ghost Portal looks like." Plasmius stated. "And I will not hesitate to send you straight back into the Ghost Zone, if that's what you wish."

Danny gulped. After his last visit, he could quite happily never step foot in the Ghost Zone again. It had been a creepy enough place to be in, even if the angry ghosts who had threatened him weren't luring around in it. And he'd only encountered two so far…

"I don't want to go back in there." Danny said firmly, but fearfully.

"So you wish to take me up on my offer then. You want to stay here?" Plasmius asked, seeking confirmation.

Danny really didn't want to stay with this manipulative half ghost, even if he had have been fully human Vlad still presented with qualities which Danny disliked and it put him on edge. But what choice did he have? He would eventually run into trouble in Amity Park, as Plasmius had correctly pointed out, and he was terrified of the Ghost Zone and those who inhabited it. Plasmius had offered him a safe haven. Danny knew he would be foolish not to accept it.

He would still be more comfortable if he knew what 'gratitude' Plasmius would be expecting from him in the future, or why he had even made the offer. Danny highly doubted Vlad had done it out of the kindness of his heart. And from what Danny had gathered so far, the half ghost had already secured allies to serve him in both the human world and Ghost Zone. So what did he really want from Danny? He guessed he'd just have to find out.

"Yeah. I'll stay." Danny whispered.

"You understand what you are agreeing to? Full protection and complete training, in return for your unquestionable loyalty and service to me?" Plasmius queried.

Danny didn't really understand, but he didn't feel he had the right, or the nerve to be demanding answers from the hybrid anymore.

"…Yes. You got it." Danny answered weakly. He then squeezed his lips tightly together and looked to the ground, as though fighting himself not to cry.

Plasmius grinned evilly. He knew he would get what he wanted. He stared at Danny He was so young, and his innocence and good nature was so obvious. Vlad could exploit that. He had no doubt he was going to enjoy having the Fenton's son as his own little apprentice. Maddie's son.

Plasmius walked over to Danny and gently tilted his head up by the chin. The boy looked back at his new 'keeper/boss' with wide eyes. He wasn't crying, although Vlad could see that his eyes were a little shiny.

"Daniel," He said firmly, "You have just made the best decision of your afterlife.

He then give Danny a nice, more reassuring smile. Which helped Danny to feel slightly less miserable and it took the edge of the theory he had of having just sold his soul to the devil.

 **()()()**

Sam Mansion lay motionlessly on her bed. It felt so surreal, just mere hours ago she had watched the coffin containing her best friend be lowered into a six foot hole in the ground. Now all she felt capable of was nothing. She wasn't weeping her heart out for the loss of her friend, she hadn't even cried before, during, or after the funeral. Sam was numb. Completely emotionless and unmotivated to focus on anything apart from the feeling of guilt. To which she was fearing there no absolution to.

Sam had not spoken since she and Tucker had left the Fenton's house the day of the accident. Not one word. Her parents believed initially that Sam's behaviour was a result was witnessing the horrific event. However, after a few days past with no improvement they became much more worried about her and wanted to take her to a doctor for help, whom she physically refused to see.

Due to her seemingly traumatic state, Sam's parents did not want her to attend Danny's funeral earlier that day, for fear her mood would plummet further if she went. As Sam came out of her room and attempted to walk out their front door, she was pulled back and restrained by her father whilst her mother desperately tried to plead their concerns to her over Sam's squeals of frustration.

The loud commotion persuaded Sam's grandmother to come out to the foyer and seek out the situation. Ida Manson was horrified by the display. She demanded to know why her son and his wife were upsetting her beloved granddaughter so. It was not something she hadn't seen before, more times than enough Ida had to back Sam up against her overbearing parents. But she knew that Sam was in a very bad place right now having witnessed the death of her dear friend. Ida couldn't bear to see her hurting any more than she already was. When they explained their concerns about Sam, Ida softened. In her wheelchair, she wheeled herself over to her motionless and silent granddaughter and wrapped her arms around her. Ida insisted that it was important that Sam go to the funeral to get closure over Danny, that it was more likely she would get worse instead of better if she did not attend. Eventually Sam's parent's folded, and agreed to let her go as long as they were with her. Ida also attended, to support her granddaughter.

Sam had felt as though she was in an odd dream when she walked into the church. The touch of her grandmother's hand had been the only thing giving her a reality check. Sam began to rethink if black was still her favourite colour, now that she had seen everyone else wearing it to commemorate her close friend. She did not pay much attention to the service, she had no interest in hearing the thoughts and opinions of some religious man who probably didn't even know Danny. Instead, her eyes and focus remained locked on Danny's coffin, where her best friend lay. Anyone watching her close enough could have believed she was in a trance.

Sam was disappointed that the Fenton's decided to have the coffin closed. Sam had desperately ached to see her friend one last time. It wasn't to be. Now and then Sam stole glances at the three remaining Fenton's, and Tucker. They were the only other people she cared about right now. The other family friends, relatives, and teachers and kids from school may not have even been there for all Sam cared of them. She knew that she and Tucker and Danny's imitate family had cared about him the most, and as such they were the most effected by his death. Anyone else could talk about the horrible tragedy of Danny's demise but only they really knew how it _felt_.

When the service was over, and Sam had dropped her fistful of dirt on to the coffin in the ground, she was stood near the entrance of the church gate with her family. Tucker walked over to her. His parents patiently waited for him several feet away. Even Ida was able to scurry Sam's protective and paranoid parents away to give the two friend's a private moment.

Tucker's eyes were red behind his glasses and his breathing was a little shaky. He had also been grieving a lot for Danny, though his parents had been a great support and he actually believed he was going to come through it, eventually. He was more worried about Sam than himself. Her parents had rang his own at one point and had inquired if he was acting…odd. But Tucker had been behaving rather normally, for a person who was grieving that is; he cried and he talked about it, he cried again and he talked some more about it, and he cried even more but he still talked about it. There was no doubt Tucker was inconsolably upset about the death of his best friend, but his parents felt he was still coping in a normal and rational way.

Tucker's mother had told him what Sam's mother had told her, and how worried the poor woman was. Tucker immediately knew that Sam's withdrawn behaviour was probably because she blamed herself for Danny's death. The last thing he could remember her saying was _'I'm sorry.'_ Tucker could see why Sam would blame herself, it had been because of her encouragement that Danny had ventured into the portal chamber. However Tucker was not upset or angry with Sam. He knew that blaming anyone would be pointless, it wasn't going to bring Danny back. He had accepted that Danny death was the result of a freak accident, and was mourning healthily because of it. Sam however, was not.

Much to her surprise, Tucker wrapped his arms around her neck and pulled her into a hug. Sam did not return it.

' _How are you holding up?_ ' He'd asked groggily as he pulled away.

Sam didn't answer. Instead she wondered with confusion how Tucker could even stand the sight of her let alone hug her. After all, she'd killed their best friend.

Tucker spoke again after several seconds of silence, _'Can you believe those jocks and cheerleaders from school showed up? Bunch of bloody hypocrites, bet Danny would get a kick out of it!'_ he'd joked through his repetitive sniffs.

Again, Sam said nothing. What did she care about the actions of shallow people such as the jocks and the cheerleaders? Tucker realised then how badly Sam was out of herself when she didn't even blink never mind crack a smile when he slated the popular kids. He firmly took her hand and looked her in the eye.

' _Sam,'_ He'd said seriously, _'Please do not blame yourself for this. It was nobody's fault, it was just an accident. Please talk to me, you're the only friend I have left now, I could really use your help right now. I think you could use mine too.'_ He'd said weakly, squeezing her hand.

Sam inhaled deeply. She'd slowly pulled her hand away but kept her eyes locked with Tucker's. Maybe he had been right, maybe she could talk to him a little. She knew Danny would have still wanted them to be friends, but she couldn't erase the guilt, that was fact.

Sam had been on the verge of nodding 'yes' to Tucker's suggestion, when she noticed Danny's sister was approaching them. Sam had wondered if she was going to attack her, on the grounds that her only brother was now dead because of her. But as Jazz got closer she gave them a watery smile, and managed to hug each of them.

' _Are you guys okay?'_ She'd asked bravely, her tearful eyes threatening to spill.

Jazz had figured she'd ask them as her parents hadn't bothered at this stage. It didn't seem to have registered with them that Sam and Tucker were present when Danny died. It may have been a good idea to talk to them and hear what they saw, never mind checking to see if either of them had been hurt, given that they had also been close to the portal at the time.

Sam stared at her, dumbstruck. How could Jazz not hate her? She had let Danny go into the Portal, why was Jazz asking if she was okay instead of demanding why she didn't stop Danny? Little did Sam know that Jazz had already firmly planted all of the blame on to her parents. She didn't hold neither Sam nor Tucker responsible for the accident, after all they weren't to know that the portal was dangerous.

' _Hanging in there Jazz. But it's really hard.'_ Tucker croaked.

' _Yeah. Yeah is it.'_ Jazz sniffed, pausing slightly to compose herself. ' _Sam, Tucker; how did it happen?'_ She'd pleaded tearfully, _'Please, I need to know.'_

Sam's heart skipped a beat, and then started racing. If she said anything she would be confirming her guiltiness and re-living the horrid event. Luckily Tucker spoke up on their behalf, knowing that Sam was currently unable or unwilling to.

' _We were just messing around Jazz.'_ Tucker had told her regretfully, ' _Sam and I were actually gonna follow him in. We didn't know it was that dangerous, if we did we never would have went near the portal. I'd give anything to go back and stop us. We're so sorry.'_

Jazz squeezed her lips together and nodded, tears began to fall down her cheeks.

' _It's not your fault,'_ She'd choked softly, _'You guys were…were good friends to Danny, he…I…I gotta go_!'

Jazz then turned away from them and quickly walked away, sobbing. The two friends stood and watched her, sorrowfully.

' _Poor Jazz._ ' Tucker whispered, thinking that the pain of losing a brother or a son may be worse than losing a friend. Even if Tucker had always thought of Danny like a brother.

Sam felt the guilt begin to lay heavier on her conscience mercilessly. Jazz was crying inconsolably right now because she had convinced her brother to walk to his death. She began to believe that all the pain that everyone felt in the churchyard right then was because of her stupid idea several days ago. How was she ever going to cope with that on her conscience?

Sam's mother suddenly appeared next to them.

' _Everything alright, Sammy-kins?_ ' She'd asked worriedly, having seen the Fenton's daughter flee from Sam and Tucker in tears.

' _It's okay_.' Tucker reassured her, ' _We were just talking to Danny's sister, and she got upset.'_

' _Oh dear, the poor thing!'_ Sam's mother cooed.

Sam didn't acknowledge her.

' _Sammy?_ ' She'd probed, realising her daughter was ignoring her, _'Sammy I think we need to be heading home now hon.'_ She'd said softly, hoping her daughter wouldn't cause a scene.

Tucker took the hint and had leaned in to hug Sam goodbye.

' _See you, Sam._ ' He'd said, ' _Please remember what I said_.' He had whispered more quietly in her ear.

Sam's mother gave him a sweet smile and a sympathetic pat on the arm before coaching her daughter away. Tucker walked over to his own parents again.

' _Ready to go now, son?'_ His father had asked gently.

' _Be with you guys in a sec.'_ Tucker replied.

He walked across the yard alone, and was relieved to see that Danny's burial site had quietened and everyone had dispersed. He was glad, he needed a moment alone to properly say goodbye to his friend. He wondered quickly if Sam had done so yet.

He approached the still open grave and stared down at the coffin, his eyes welling.

' _Goodbye Danny_.' He whispered, ' _I'll always remember you dude. Thanks for all the great memories._ '

After a few minutes Tucker had returned to his parents and went home, knowing that now the funeral had passed he would be forced to move on with his life without his best friend Danny.

 **()()()**

 **Ugh…To be honest, hate ending chapters doom and gloomy like this one. Oh well, the next one has a more optimistic ending I believe! As previously mentioned, further chapters are typed and ready for updating so it shall be with you in one week or less! In the meantime, take it easy everyone…and please share your thoughts with a review!**

 **xseriouslyx**


	6. what's in a name?

**Hi everyone, so on completion of this chapter, you will officially be halfway through the story! Hope you enjoy chapter 6: 'What's in a name?'**

 **()()()**

Desiree had been pretty low since Vlad had 'dismissed' her from his home, in favour of Skulker. She had all too easily felt scorned and rejected, even though there had been no malice in Vlad's intentions. Desiree had tried and failed to seek out a 'natural portal' between the Ghost Zone and the human world. 'Natural' meaning that a dimensional tear would sporadically appear in random areas for short time periods. This was how most ghosts made their journey to the land of the living.

Normally Desiree didn't have to resort to such a nuisance, she would generally use Vlad's portal. Very few ghosts knew about its location, so he was rarely bothered by uninvited guests. However when she had attempted to travel back to Wisconsin the morning after she'd been asked to leave, she found that the great swirling portal had been deactivated, and was now just a large blank circle. Vlad rarely deactivated his portal, it was secure enough with its secluded location within the Ghost Zone. Desiree also knew at this time of the morning Vlad would have been at his human occupation, so it's not like any ghosts (like her) could invade his home and annoy him. Only a selected few of Vlad's trusted allies knew how to use the portal when it had been deactivated by himself, and she was not one of them. This meant she had no immediate access to gullible humans, who she could grant wishes to.

And what's more, Desiree had been unsuccessful in finding any ghosts within the Ghost Zone to fall for her 'granting your wish' scheme. Her energy levels were beginning to decrease as a result of being unable to grant wishes in what seemed like such a long time. In reality it had been merely two days, but still the genie ghost felt her very mood decline all the same. Desiree was well known in the realm, and very few were willing or stupid enough to play into her game. Desiree had become quite an isolated ghost because of this issue.

She knew this was another reason why she had grown so attached to Vlad, he was realistically the only comrade she had. The genie ghost knew that her deeper and more intimate feelings for Vlad were unnatural however. Like humans, ghosts could also feel the need to form close attachments with other ghosts. And occasionally it did happen. Kitty and Johnny 13 were practically joined at the hip, when they weren't fighting; there had been rumours that the Box Ghost had eyes for Lunch Lady, and some even believed that Spectra's relationship with Bertrand was more than just 'business.' But the one couple that really sickened Spectra was of course, Skulker and Ember. She didn't believe that Skulker deserved, or was even capable of 'love,' and she truly wanted the relationship to crash and burn.

However, all of these pairings were between two ghosts. Desiree had felt foolish that she had fallen for the half ghost. It was ludicrous, the man was still alive and had his life to live. She knew he could have any living woman he wanted given his distinguished charms, and she was aware that a number of human females would be attracted to his wealth. But still her dream of processing his love was strong.

Desire did not believe she would ever love another man again after she had been so harshly scorned whilst she was alive. Naturally, she couldn't remember the circumstances, but she knew deep down by her ever constant feelings of hurt that she had to have died of a broken heart. She was convinced she could still _feel_ it. So she had developed a true hatred of men, and it sickened her to be in the presence of them sometimes. But as she gradually got to know Vlad from a potential victim, to an acquaintance, to a friend, she hardly noticed her fondness for him developing. Or her attraction. It seemed Desiree had been wrong about her thoughts on all men. Maybe there was one good male left, and she thought him to be Vlad Masters/Plasmius. Of course, Desiree knew it was unlikely that the hybrid felt the same way about her, but she refused to give up hope.

She was dwelling more and more on her feelings these days, and Desiree was beginning to grow impatient. The thought of declaring her love for Vlad had often crossed her mind recently, but the possibility of rejection hindered her greatly. She couldn't bear to have her heart broken again, especially by Vlad. And if he did reject her, she would resort to having no one again, and she just could not cope with that.

So as she endlessly floated idly through the Ghost Zone, Desiree contemplated when her next visit with Vlad would be, and what she would say and do to make the visit an amazing one.

 **()()()**

Danny sat crossed legged on the floor of Vlad's study with several pages and books scattered around him in a circle. He had spent the majority of the afternoon flicking through ancient and questionably recorded manuscripts regarding the origins of the Ghost Zone, and different cores which produce a ghost's chromosomal make-up and ultimately their powers. Although it was tedious, Danny found the information Vlad had handed to him incredibly interesting. Especially now as he knew ghosts did exist, and he unmistakably was one. If someone had handed these writings to him a week ago, he probably would have rolled his eyes not given them a second glance. Particularly as some of it was incredibly difficult to interpret. He wondered if his parents had ever read this stuff, he knew they would have really got sucked into its content. Although he knew it would be very unlikely, giving that the manuscripts looked as though they had been created purposely for ghosts by ghosts.

Danny felt a pang of sadness when he thought about his parents. He felt Vlad had been really cruel when he told them he was not to see them again, even if he did say it for his own good, Danny knew he could have gone about it in a kinder, less hurtful way. The man clearly had an unsympathetic nature about him. Danny hoped his family and friends were okay, and that his funeral hadn't been too upsetting for them, he couldn't stand the thought of having caused them pain as a result of stupidly touching the wrong thing in that portal. That's one thing he couldn't deny; his death was his own fault. He should have kept his hands to himself, he concluded. In order to prevent himself from becoming visibly upset by thinking about his family and his cause of death, Danny refocused on the task at hand.

Reading was not considered an exciting pass time by Danny, but Vlad had insisted that he learn the very basics about who he had now become in order to understand how to be a ghost. Danny had thought bitterly to himself that no one had to learn how to be a human, you just went with the flow and hoped for the best. And as for others who died and became ghosts, Danny highly doubted that they were all handed several books in order to 'learn' how to correctly go about being a ghost. But he did what he had been asked, and was actually glad to finally admit that he understood why he was a ghost and partially what that meant. Be it as troublesome as it seemed.

Danny was already questioning what his 'unfinished business' was. He certainly had no regrets about his life, and minus the bullies at school he thought he had been a generally happy kid. So why was he a ghost? What unfinished business did he possibly have…beside the rest of his life? And how come he had kept his memories and no one else did? Danny simply concluded that rare phenomenon's must happen the odd time when a person was transferred from life to death. Vlad had been one, and now he was too. Only Danny had wished he had also kept half his humanity like Vlad had done, he had been really lucky.

Danny stole a quick glance at Vlad. He was also in the study, sitting a few feet away at his desk and looking through his own documents and writing things down. Danny was mildly impressed at the man's attention span. Vlad had long since reverted to his human form, Danny preferred him slightly more this way, because he looked less threatening. The half ghost hadn't spoken much to Danny since they left the lab. He had ensured that Danny had plenty to occupy himself with, and made certain he received lunch, but other than that interaction between them had been slim.

All in all Danny felt as though he were a small child whom Vlad was being forced to babysit, he had simply left him in a corner where he could keep an eye on him, fed him, but really wanted as little to do with him as possible. Again, this caused Danny to question why Vlad had wanted him in the first place.

Vlad caught the boy staring at him out of the corner of his eye.

"Everything alright, Daniel?" The man asked suddenly without looking up, causing Danny to jump slightly.

"Um, yeah." Danny replied. "I was just wondering…what you were reading is all."

"You mean you're bored and are wondering if I'd get into a conversation with you." Vlad smiled knowingly at him.

"Can't it be both?" Danny smiled back weakly.

"Well considering you know I was supposed to be at work today I thought you might have guessed that I would be reading work related material." Vlad answered dryly.

"Oh." Danny mumbled. He was disappointed that his now only source of companionship was deliberately trying to limit conversation between them. But Danny was not known for being a quitter.

"That map beside you doesn't look all that business related." Danny angled.

Vlad glanced at the map he had sat to one side. It looked as though he had been caught out.

"You're sharper than I gave you credit for." Vlad revealed, mildly impressed.

Danny got to his feet and walked over to the desk where the billionaire was sat.

"Yeah, I get that sometimes." Danny grinned slightly. "So where does it lead to?" He pressed, trying to get another glance. It didn't look like any other map he'd ever seen before, the roads and landmarks where all over the place. In fact, when he looked twice it didn't look like roads at all!

Vlad snatched the map and rolled it up, out of the teenager's view. He then frowned irritably at the boy.

"If it were any of your business I would have consulted you with it." Vlad told him curtly, "Now you cannot possibly expect be to believe you have finished reading all the material I gave you?"

Danny bit his lower lip. "…Most of it." He replied weakly.

"That's not all of it, is it?" Vlad retorted.

"But I've been reading for hours." Danny whined to the hybrid, "I get the important stuff, honest."

Danny preyed Vlad would ease up on the reading, he felt he couldn't face another word. He'd even eaten his lunch particularly slowly earlier just to increase the length of time he would be away from the books.

Vlad sighed at the boy's persistence. Clearly he was bored, but Vlad wasn't in the mood for entertaining a ghost who had only developed the matureness level of a fourteen year old.

"Look," Vlad said firmly, "I've other important matters demanding my attention right now. So you're just going to have to accept that and entertain yourself with those books, because I don't have the time nor patience for you right this minute."

Danny pouted slightly, but he stopped pestering the man and he crept back to his corner with the books all the same. After all, he would be unwise to anger the half ghost who took him, especially as he scared him enough already.

Vlad rolled his eyes at the teen as he watched him sit back down, his head hung in defeat. The half ghost wasn't used to children, little ones or older ones like Danny, and he had forgotten how irritating they could be. But he was certain that he could train Danny out of such annoying behaviour in little time at all.

 **()()()**

Skulker decided to return to Vlad the day after the incident. It wasn't uncommon for the two ally's to drop in on each other's domain once in a while, and Vlad was bound to understand that Skulker was highly curious about the young ghost whom he had brought to him the night before. Skulker didn't know if it would be wise to confront Vlad about his intentions with the ghost boy again, but perhaps he could informally gather something to boost his reassurance. He had a feeling that due to the circumstances, the half ghost would not be at his human occupation. So rather than wasting time, Skulker made his way to Plasmius' portal in the Ghost Zone.

The hunter was mildly surprised to find the secretive portal was inactive. Skulker knew that Plasmius only did this when he had truly got on the wrong side of the wrong ghost and was fearful for his life. Not that this happened often, Plasmius was well aware about who he could pick fights with in the Ghost Zone. But the hunter knew this time the situation was different. Given that Skulker was a highly trusted ally to Plasmius, the half ghost had informed him on how he could manipulate the portal from the Ghost Zone to allow him to briefly activate it so he could pass through. Skulker played about with a couple of 'random' objects which floated near the portal. Sure enough, the empty blank circle came to life and masses of swirls spiralled inside it as proof. Skulker smiled and jumped through the portal, landing firmly on the floor of Plasmius' lab.

Only a short time had passed since Vlad had spoken sharply with Danny, the young ghost hadn't muttered a word since. He wearily flicked through page after page of ghostly information, hardly reading any of it at all, when he felt a sharp, cold tingle travel up his spine. Danny involuntarily gasped outwardly, revealing a small wisp of blue condensation escaping from his mouth. Vlad looked over at the boy upon hearing the heavy exhale, just to catch a glimpse of the blue wisp. He raised his eyebrows at the sight.

"What was that?" Danny cried in surprise.

Before Vlad could respond, Skulker fazed into the room and appeared suddenly.

"Whoa!" Danny exclaimed upon seeing the large, intimidating ghost hunter conjure out of nowhere.

Skulker merely glared in the boy's direction, and walked towards Vlad's desk where the half ghost was still sat. Vlad casually greeted Skulker with a nod before turning to Danny.

"That, my boy, was a ghost sense. You have probably been too distracted to have fully noticed it before, but I imagine you received it when you developed your ghost core. And if you had read more closely about ghost cores like you were told to do, you would know that it is highly associated with an ice core." Vlad flatly explained to Danny.

Danny sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck. He had an ice core, what did that mean exactly? He would definately have to read or talk to Vlad about it later. If in fact, Vlad would talk to him. Danny then gawped at the mechanical looking ghost who was currently stood in front of Vlad. Should he be afraid of him? Would he want to waste him like Vlad said every ghost would?

Skulker narrowed his eyes at Danny before turning is focus to Vlad again, smiling coyly at the half ghost.

"I see he regained 'consciousness' then?" The hunter joked sarcastically.

"Indeed. You may tell Ember to have better luck next time." Vlad replied drolly.

Danny stared at the interaction between them. He was puzzled to see it looked as though they were friends. And why was this metallic ghost talking as though he had seen Danny before?

"You know she wasn't too impressed when I told her what concluded here last night." Skulker said.

"Oh, she'll get over it." Vlad replied breezily. "As will you, I hope."

Skulker turned and looked at the boy more closely. Jack and Maddie Fenton's boy…it may be a little more difficult to get over than what Plasmius could tell.

"What's your name, whelp?" Skulker barked demandingly at Danny.

Danny visibly jumped before answering the intimidating ghost who towered over him, "D-Danny Fenton."

Skulker scowled disbelievingly at the boy. "Danny Fenton?" He scoffed repeatedly, "What kind of pathetic name is that for a ghost?"

Danny sulked slightly, angry by the ghost's nasty remark. What was wrong with his name? He thought it was fine.

Vlad smiled when he saw Danny's face, amused by his confused reaction.

"Now Skulker, the boy doesn't know any better." Vlad said condescendingly.

"Well isn't that the sort of thing you're supposed to be _'teaching'_ him?" Skulker grinned at his associate mockingly, "Get with the program, Plasmius!"

"What's wrong with my name?" Danny demanded, irritated at being the brunt of their joke, "And who is this jerk?" He added daringly, referring to Skulker.

"Why you…" Skulker growled angrily at the boy's insult.

"Skulker. Don't." Vlad said warningly. "Daniel, this is Skulker, my most trusted ally. It was he who brought you to me last night in your less than flattering battered state. So fewer words of insult and more of gratitude, perhaps?"

Danny stared disbelievingly at the fearful mechanical ghost. "You saved me?"

Skulker scowled upon hearing those words, "Regretfully, yes." He reluctantly admitted.

Danny was surprised to learn that this ghost had done the saving rather than the attempted killing. But it was true, he had to get here somehow and Skulker and Vlad were clearly on good terms…and a good turn is a good turn, even if unintentional.

"Umm…Thank you." Danny mumbled uneasily, making his statement sound more like a question than confirmed gratitude.

"Marvellous. We're all friends again." Vlad joked sarcastically, "Now Skulker, was there something I can do for you?"

"Well…I was intending on speaking to you about something, but I can see you're busy." The hunter replied eying Danny, revealing he was to be the topic of discussion.

"I see." Vlad said, understanding Skulker's tone, "Yes. Perhaps that better wait until another time."

Danny shuffled in the corner uncomfortably knowing that he was the theme of interest right now. He wondered what all had been discussed behind his back already, and who else was involved.

"But to keep you busy until then, I have a surprise for you." Vlad continued, speaking to Skulker.

He picked of the map he had snatched away from Danny's eyes earlier and handed it to Skulker. The ghost took a quick glance at it and beamed.

"Plasmius, how did you get this?" Skulker asked.

He was elated to be holding a map which should directly guide him to 'The forgotten Tombs' in the Ancient Realms of the Ghost Zone. Very few ghosts knew these whereabouts, hence the term 'Forgotten.' However they had been rumoured to be a hunter's dream spot, with plenty of ancient artefacts and endangered creatures residing within them. To Skulker, he was holding a map to ecstasy.

"I made a deal with the right ghost, Skulker." Vlad said simply. "I'm a business man, it's what I do. Consider it a token of my gratitude."

"Right!" Skulker exclaimed, before turning around and marching away.

"Leaving already?" Vlad asked in faked surprise.

Skulker briefly turned again and grinned, "I've got some ancient valuables to obtain! I'll let myself out."

Skulker then headed back to the Ghost Zone, momentarily opening Plasmius' portal again. Meanwhile, Vlad relaxed at his desk chair. He smiled contently, knowing that he had successfully bought a day or two without worrying about Skulker lurking about for more information regarding Danny. He had a feeling that the mechanical ghost had not been satisfied with what was discussed the previous night, and Vlad feared it would get worse once Skulker learns that he had really no intentions of booting Danny back into the Ghost Zone at all.

Meanwhile Danny was still sat on the floor of the study, confused by why Vlad seemed pleased by Skulker leaving so suddenly. It was hardly a response to the hunter's excitement over receiving the map. He then scowled to himself when he remembered something the ghost had said.

"You didn't answer me." Danny said to Vlad. "What's wrong with my name?"

"Hm? Oh, that." Vlad recalled disinterestedly. "There's nothing wrong with your name Daniel. Ghosts simply choose a new name for themselves since they can't remember their human one. They generally just go by a name they like, or something they believe is linked to their personality. You gave Skulker your human name, he merely found it 'un-ghost like.'"

"So you're saying I need to pick a new name?" Danny asked. He really didn't want to, he had had enough of these bizarre changes. And although he had changed physically, he didn't want to lose sight of who he really was, and that was Danny Fenton.

Vlad looked at Danny as he carefully considered that proposal. There was no doubt that Danny couldn't go around announcing he was a Fenton, it was like a red flag to an already enraged bull. However, Vlad also didn't want him to select something idiotic, after all he was fourteen. He wondered for a second if he should pick the boy's ghost name, he was taking care of him after all. Shouldn't that be part of the deal? But then Danny could resent both the name and Vlad if he wasn't allowed to choose for himself…

"I'm not saying you should simply 'pick' a new name, Daniel." Vlad finally answered, "But one thing is certain, you cannot inform other ghosts that you are a Fenton, it will only get you into trouble."

"Oh," Danny responded, disheartened. "But you didn't change your name."

"I did. I told you this earlier, in my human form I can use my given name, Vlad Masters, but other ghosts address me by my chosen ghost name, Vlad Plasmius." The hybrid informed Danny.

"So you only altered half your name…" Danny confirmed, "Why did you choose Plasmius?"

Vlad rolled his eyes at the boy, growing bored of the conversation and realising he was not going to be able to return to his work. "Because I became half ghost by having ecto-plasmic elements blown up in my face." He replied sardonically.

"Maybe I'll only change half my name too." Danny concluded, ignoring his keeper's bored tone. "I don't think I'm fully ghost either, so I'll only take on half a ghost name."

Vlad smiled slightly at the boy for choosing to follow his influence. Perhaps there was hope for him yet…

"Well, if I can't be Danny Fenton anymore, even though I really wish I could be…" Danny pondered gloomily out loud, "Then I guess I could be called…Danny Phantom."

Vlad raised his eyebrows. The hybrid was quite impressed that the boy had chosen a name that was ghost relatable, and was still somewhat similar to his human surname. It was quite clever actually, and Vlad was pleased to think that the title actually suited the teen.

Danny watched Vlad's expression, "What do you think?" He timidly asked the half ghost. The boy hoped he wouldn't think it was unsuitable or ridiculous.

Vlad nodded approvingly, "It's perfectly fine. If that's what you want, you may use 'Phantom' as your new name." He told him.

"I think I will." Danny said, as he stood up and walked over to Vlad's desk. He leaned his hands down on the table and quickly skimmed over the several documents which were spread all over, almost completely covering it.

"Erm, you nearly done?" Danny asked shyly, but hopefully. If he didn't get out of this study soon he felt like he would go insane.

Vlad sighed at the teen's persistent annoyance. He glanced at his watch, which indicated it was only four forty. Vlad rarely finished his work his early. He looked up at the boy again, who met him with longing eyes. Vlad rolled his own.

"I suppose I better have a conversation with you regarding your core, since you blatantly didn't bother to read that section." Vlad said irritably. "But first, let go see what we want prepared for our dinner this evening shall we, Daniel."

Vlad stood up and began to exist the room. Danny eagerly followed, glad to get away from those books. As they walked through the corridor, Danny finally built up the courage to ask Vlad something which he had been wondering since he met the man.

"Vlad, why do you call me Daniel?" He asked harmlessly, "You can call me Danny, you know. I've always been called Danny.

Vlad merely smirked at the teen. He much preferred the name Daniel, and knew if it had ever been his decision it would never have been shortened. But now it was his decision, so now it wouldn't be.

"I think I will continue to call you by your given name, _Daniel_."

 **()()()**

 **Until next time lovely readers! Don't forget to express your thoughts, drop the story a review.**

 **xseriouslyx**


	7. It's Time for Change

Danny woke up with a jolt in the middle of the night. He frantically looked around his new, and still unusual surroundings before sighing heavily and dropping back down on his pillow. He was now wide awake.

This was certainly going to take some getting used to. It was the first night Danny (willingly) had to get himself to sleep since becoming a ghost. Vlad had told him that he shouldn't really need a terrible lot of sleep as ghosts hardly rest, and sleep was an unnecessary function for them. However, when the hybrid informed him that evening that he was going to bed, to rest his human half clearly, Danny informed him was feeling sleepy, and also wanted to go to bed. Vlad found it odd that Danny was still submitting to his humanly functions, which were no longer necessary. He wondered if Danny was in a physical state of denial, due to having his memories.

It was fairly obvious that Danny was not simply addressing his human needs out of habit; if he stopped breathing he felt his chest become tight, he wanted to eat at consistent times to avoid hunger, the boy even visited the bathroom regularly to obey his bodily signals. However as a ghost, any food consumption was completely converted into spectral energy and none was wasted, meaning this last factor was a pointless one, and did suggest Danny's mind was playing physical tricks on him. As a result of the excess energy from his food consumption, Danny now struggled to get to sleep, even though he desperately wanted to.

Now he was awake again due to being plagued by a chilling nightmare. Danny hadn't suffered from them since he was a small child, sometimes he'd listened to his father's ghost tales a little too closely and they had resulted in subconscious consequences. Now that Danny was a ghost himself, he had dreamed about being stuck in the Ghost Zone.

 _The random swirly green wisps had swiftly twirled around him, as though threatening to tie him up., the floating purple doors menacingly banged open and closed, and Danny's inexperience of flying or floating left him unsteady, threatening to drop him into the bottomless black and green sky. As though that wasn't intimidating enough, Danny was surrounded by countless vengeful faceless ghosts, apart the four (and a half) he had already encountered. Vlad Plasmius stood grinning evilly next to Skulker, Ember, and Walker. Even the little blue servant ghost was there, and they all looked fiendishly angry._

" _You see, I told you I would deliver the Fenton's son!" Plasmius jeered._

" _Now he will pay for what his foul parents did to us!" Ember snarled, clutching her trademark guitar._

 _Danny was then bombarded by the fleet of shrieking merciless ghosts._

Thankfully, he'd woken up before he had proceeded to imagine any more gruesome details. Or scream. He wouldn't relish having to explain the childish fear to Vlad, the half ghost was already condescending enough as it was. Not to mention he might take offence at the part where Danny had dreamed he had been the one to hand him over to ghosts, and went on to attack him.

As Danny lay in the large four poster bed, he thought about home. He wondered how his family and friends were coping. What he would give to see them for a little while, even if he couldn't necessarily interact with them. But what use would that be really? Danny felt a tear roll down the side of his face. He quickly rubbed his eyes and tried to think about something else. Danny was beginning to realise why ghosts didn't take their memories with them when they died, it makes it harder to focus on anything else and move on. Perhaps the fact that he'd held on to his was more a curse than a blessing, for all they did when he thought about them made him feel sad and guilty.

Danny was trying hard to accept his strange new circumstances, but there had been so much to take in the past couple of days. He'd put on a brave face through most of it, but he knew that it was fairly transparent. He was actually surprised that Vlad Masters hadn't yet called him on his bluff, he seemed arrogant enough to do so.

Danny was very uncertain about Vlad, he didn't know what to think of the half ghost, or where he stood with him. It seemed like he tried to be kind on one hand, but snatched it away with the other. Or vice-versa, he could say something sharp or nasty and then lightly cover it up. It was an unusual pattern. All Danny could conclude from spending the previous day with him was that he was a very controlling individual.

Danny could not yet decide if choosing to stay with Vlad had been the wisest choice. Although he knew he was safe, Danny didn't feel like he was. He was worried that Vlad Plasmius was yet to show his true colors, after all he had made it obvious that he still held a grudge against Jack and that didn't bode well with Danny. However, he found it strange that he didn't mention his mother when discussing the details of his accident. It was indeed odd but Danny knew better than to broach the sensitive topic again; making Vlad angry did not seem like a winning idea.

Cluttered thoughts concerning the half ghost continued to play around in Danny's mind until around or shortly after 6am. That's when Danny heard movement. He listened carefully, and sure enough a few moments later he heard footsteps lightly pass his slightly opened door. Danny sat up when he heard the steps fade away, it had to have been Vlad. He couldn't believe he had lay awake half the night thinking about the man! However Danny realised that he wasn't even tired, maybe as a ghost he really didn't require as much sleep as he thought. After considering it for a few minutes, Danny slipped out of the bed and decided to follow the half ghost who was also awake.

As Danny plodded down the hallway and flights of stairs, assuming that Vlad had gone to the kitchen, he wondered if perhaps Vlad would be in a better mood today. Maybe yesterday he had just been on edge about everything, especially as he had to briefly discuss his unpleasant past with Danny. The young ghost hoped that this was the case, and there was a chance that he would see a nicer, more permanent side to Vlad Masters.

Danny walked through the dining room and the kitchen, Vlad wasn't in either room. Neither was the servant ghost, much to Danny's relief. So he went into the lounge area and found Vlad sitting relaxed on a sofa chair in a satin robe, sipping a cup of tea. When he saw the teen he gave him what seemed to be a genuine smile.

"Good morning, Daniel," Vlad greeted pleasantly. "I gather you didn't sleep well?" he added smugly.

Danny's eyes widened, how could he possibly have known that? Did he have to be right about everything? Danny felt his cheeks color slightly, maybe he did cry out in his sleep after all.

"What makes you say that?" Danny asked nonchalantly.

"You're a teenager who has willingly got up at 6am." Vlad smiled, "And you're also a ghost. Ghosts do not tend to require much sleep as I told you last night, but your body seems to be under the impression that it's still human."

Danny frowned upsettingly. Why did he not feel the need to behave like a ghost? Danny slumped over and sat on the chair opposite Vlad's, resting his head thoughtfully on his hand. Vlad raised an eyebrow, it was certainly odd having company at this time of the morning!

"Vlad?" Danny mumbled, "Why don't I behave like a ghost?" He asked sadly.

Vlad took another sip of his tea, he hadn't been expecting that. Vlad wasn't normally a 'deep' person and all things emotional made him uncomfortable. Was this going to be a regular thing with the boy?

"Can't say I know, Daniel." Vlad stated, "It's possible because you don't know how to do ghostly things your body hasn't accepted the change yet. Perhaps I'll teach you a thing or two today to get you in the way of it."

Danny scowled at the answer, "More books?" He asked worriedly.

"A book can hardly show you how to fly now can it?" Vlad smirked.

"You're gonna teach me how to fly?" Danny asked, trying to mask his excitement.

"I suppose I'd better, you don't seem to have gotten the hang of it yourself." Vlad replied unkindly, "I'm yet to see you hover even a few inches off the ground."

Danny squirmed uncomfortably, it was hardly his fault he didn't know how to fly, was it? Vlad downed what was remaining of his tea, set it on the corner table, and stood up.

"We'll get started after breakfast." Vlad told him, "I normally eat after seven. Perhaps you're hungry now?"

"I can wait." Danny mumbled.

"Very well then, I'll see you in a while." Vlad commented before leaving the room to continue with his usual morning rituals.

Danny remained seated and continued to ponder after the hybrid had left. He also always seemed to be so posh and punctual as well. Was spontaneous not in his vocabulary?

"What a fruitloop…" Danny muttered to himself.

 **()()()**

True to his word, Vlad brought Danny out to his courtyard shortly after breakfast to teach him the very basics of being a ghost: flying. Danny wasn't sure if there was a chill in the air, or if his ice core was playing him about, but he felt shivery. He hoped it wasn't actually his ghost sense and that there would be an invasion of angry ghosts any minute.

"Calm yourself, Daniel." Vlad demanded.

"Huh?" Danny mumbled. Why would Vlad ask him to be calm?

Just then Vlad transformed into his ghost half. If Danny's heart had a pulse he knew it would have quickened right now. He really didn't like the look of Vlad's ghost half at all.

"You're shivering." Plasmius stated, "That means your core is unstable. It's not cold out here, and there are no other ghosts present besides you and I. It could only mean you're worried about something and it's causing your core to act up. Think of it as anxiety symptoms for ghosts."

Danny frowned. Was everything he was going to do in the half ghost's presence going to be analysed and judged?

"Something which you need to alleviate sooner rather than later." Plasmius continued, whilst beginning to float into the air. "You see Daniel, the very basics of ghost powers require a level of control, a level of confidence. Flying, for example, can be as simple as walking if you allow it to be."

Danny watched Plasmius and bitterly thought to himself that it was easy enough for Plasmius to say this, but his first experience of flying probably wasn't shooting through the Ghost Zone at an explosive speed.

"So Daniel," Plasmius called from a few feet from above, "Do you want to fly?"

"…Yeah." Danny called back.

"So, do it." Plasmius said simply.

That was it? That was his lesson? Danny scowled angrily, what kind of useless trainer was he? A school teacher wouldn't just hand a child a book and say; ' _You want to learn to read? Have at it!_ ' What was Danny meant to do? Jump up and hope he stayed up? He stared up at Plasmius, waiting for further instruction.

"I'm waiting Daniel!" Plasmius tormented.

"I…What I'm I supposed to do?" Danny called miserably.

"Fly of course!" Plasmius sneered, folding his arms whilst he remained floating with ease.

"But I don't know how." Danny responded downheartedly. "It's not that I don't want to, I can't. You were supposed to show me how.

"Hm." Vlad mumbled.

He believed the boy had the will to embrace his inner ghost, he simply lacked confidence in his abilities. Plasmius decided that Danny needed to detach from his human limitations…and he knew just how to do this.

"Alright." Plasmius concluded, "Let's try another approach."

Plasmius swiftly swooped down and grasped Danny by the arm, pulling him up into the air with him.

"Whoa!" Danny cried in surprise, as he watched the ground become further and further away.

Danny wondered why Plasmius had decided to fly him up in the air himself, didn't he want him to get in the air on his own accord? Danny suddenly recalled a day from about a decade ago, when his dad had removed the stabilisers from his bike. _'Don't worry Danny boy, you'll be perfectly safe!'_ Jack Fenton had boomed, as he pushed the small wobbling child on his bike. _'You just need to find the balance is all.'_ He had reassured his son. Sure enough, Jack had let Danny go too soon, and the boy had ended up tipping over into a bush, bawling over a nasty cut he'd received in the process. Needless to say, it was a long time before he had attempted bike riding again.

Danny looked anxiously at Plasmius, "You're not gonna drop me to try and get me to fly, are you?" Danny asked, concerned about the hybrids intentions.

"Drop you?" Vlad repeated innocently, "Of course not dear boy, that would be cruel." But Plasmius was smiling, revealing his villainous pointed fangs. _'And predictable!'_ He thought.

A few seconds later Plasmius landed Danny and himself safely on a small flat surface area on the roof of the castle. Danny briefly looked around.

"What are we doing up here?" He asked.

"Oh, I thought it would help to get you used to a higher air altitude." Plasmius lied. "Daniel, you understand that because you are a ghost you cannot physically die again, correct?" He queried.

"Uh, yeah." Danny answered.

"Good. And do you know that you don't actually have any 'bones' as such right? That you are made up of eco-plasm and other spectral cells, yes?"

"I think I read something about that yesterday." Danny confirmed, "Why?"

Plasmius' grinned, with a wicked twinkle in his eye.

"Just thought you should know!" he roared as he gave Danny a hard shoved.

The boy screamed as he fell off the roof and hurdled towards the ground. Plasmius chuckled humorously to himself. In his opinion, the best case scenario would be Danny could stop himself from hitting the ground by flying. Thus seeing his ghostly capabilities more prominently. Worst case scenario he hits the ground and receives a nasty scratch, but then accepts his ghost form more openly from the lack of injury. It was a win-win situation in Vlad's eyes. Plus he got to shove the bothersome brat off the roof!

After several seconds had passed, Plasmius flew down after Danny to inspect the result. He landed safely on the ground and smiled with amusement…and success. There was Danny, floating horizontally roughly at Vlad's eye level height from the ground, with his arms folded across his face clearly bracing himself for impact.

"How high do you think the castle's roof is Daniel?" Plasmius mocked, as Danny's arms remained firmly over his eyes.

Reluctantly, Danny slowly brought his stiff arms away from his face, and wobbled unsteadily in mid-air. It was such a peculiar feeling, and he was unsure of how he even done it. All he could do was pray he didn't hit the ground, and he'd stopped falling. Once he was somewhat sure he would stay hovering and not drop the last few feet, he eyed Plasmius angrily.

"You pushed me off the roof!" Danny accused furiously.

"So my teaching methods are a little abrupt." Plasmius shrugged. "You're learning to fly aren't you? Did I not deliver as promised?"

"How was this any different from not dropping me out of the sky?" Danny demanded.

"…You didn't see this coming!" Plasmius laughed, "Oh come on, it's not like anything sinister would have happened, grow up. Now let's go, we're going to fly back up to the roof."

"What, so you can shove me off again?" Danny growled bitterly.

"Of course not!" Plasmius snapped, "…It's not funny a second time! Come."

Plasmius impatiently waited for Danny whilst he figured out how to manoeuvre his body direction and fly in that course, in this case, upwards. Eventually, the two of them were stood on the roof for the second time. Danny kept more of a distance from Plasmius, untrustingly.

"You can relax, Daniel." Plasmius said dryly, "I am not going to send you off the roof again."

"Oh yeah?" Danny replied huffily, in a disbelieving tone.

"No, I'm not. You're going to jump yourself this time." Plasmius said assertively.

Danny looked at Plasmius as though he had grown a second head. "You're kidding, right?"

"Far from it. You see Daniel, you're lacking in what every ghost needs to be skilled with their abilities: confidence about succession. Once you trust yourself, your powers will come easily." Plasmius explained.

The half ghost then took a great leap, and shot up into the sky. Danny watched him, enviously.

"Your turn!" He shouted to Danny.

Danny looked up, then he looked down. Could he really bring himself to jump when he knew the ground was that far away? He wouldn't deny it, Danny was scared to try.

"What if I fall?" Danny called out nervously to Plasmius.

Plasmius rolled his eyes, was it not obvious? "You try again." He answered dryly.

Danny comprehended that if he didn't do this the half ghost would probably be very cruel about it and shame him. Danny could understand that Plasmius may be angry and disappointed if his efforts on him turned out to be a waste. And if there was one thing Danny hated to do it was to disappoint someone, be it his parents, a friend, or even a harsh school teacher, he hated the feeling of guilt and remorse that came with disappointing someone. Now the 'someone' was a bitter half ghost who had taken Danny on as his charge. But Danny also knew he would disappoint himself if he didn't succeed. He wanted to be prosperous as a ghost to make up for his short life as a human, and achieving this required learning to fly. Albeit from a terrifying method.

"Daniel, are we doing this?" Plasmius called impatiently, "Because I have other things I could be busying my time with if you're going to waste it."

Danny gave a quick glance to where Plasmius floated above him several metres away. He inhaled a deep breathe.

"I can do this." He whispered firmly to himself.

He then bent his legs and arms, focused his eyes on Plasmius, and took a forceful jump off the roof edge and shot his arms above his head. Within a matter of seconds, the young ghost was floating breezily next to his keeper.

Danny stared down at the ground below in disbelieve. "I did it." He whispered.

He then looked excitedly at Plasmius, "I did it!" He laughed, "I can fly!"

This feeling wasn't peculiar at all, Danny decided, it was incredible!

Plasmius couldn't help but smile slightly at the boy's overjoyed reaction. It was somewhat moving to see something so simple make him this happy. Vlad too was also relieved, maybe this meant he had misjudged the boy; perhaps he would prove to be a fast learner after all. Which would certainly be a blessing from where the hybrid stood.

 **()()()**

Maddie had rarely stopped weeping since she'd found out her little boy was gone. She would never forgive herself for leaving those three kids alone in the lab. Jazz had been right, she and Jack were to blame. But she certainly was not going to turn against her husband because of this, she wouldn't be able to get through it without him. It was him alone who convinced her eat, sleep, bathe. He had even been preparing her (basic) meals, and drew her marvellous bubble baths. Jack had never been forced to take on the primary carer role before, normally he relished in being the 'fun parent.' However he was certainly giving his new found responsibility his best shot. It was helping him to feel useful, and was keeping his mind occupied and less focused on the pain from the loss of his son. He wondered sometimes if he had been a little more serious and strict when Danny was alive, would he have left his parent's invention alone?

Now that the funeral had passed, Jack and Maddie realised that they had to focus on their future. Moving on was always the hardest part, but finding ways to do so was equally hard. The couple also had their daughter to think of, Jazz. She was obviously struggling greatly with the loss of her beloved 'little brother.' However Jack and Maddie were at a standstill with her presently, as she still refused to speak to either of them. They could only pray that she would come around soon.

The one thing that was truly haunting Maddie at the moment was the basement. The lab. The room in which her precious son had breathed his last breath. And that cold metal chamber, the portal which had so hastily wiped Danny from life, still stood. Mocking them. She would see to it personally that the portal would be destroyed, as soon as she could gather up the courage required to face it. That wasn't the only thing playing on her mind.

Jack came into the room and smiled weakly at his wife. They were alone together in their living room, Jazz was dwelling in her bedroom and rarely made an appearance. Maddie in particular currently liked being in the living room. This was where so many of her fond memories of Danny were made. In the living room he had taken his first steps, opened Christmas presents, joined in on family game nights, and even just blissfully watched T.V with his family. How could she have taken those times for granted? There were also same framed photos of Danny, which showed how he had grown from her beautiful baby into a handsome young man. She liked to look at them and remember the changes and milestones in Danny's life.

As Jack sat down next to his wife, he gently patted her leg. When she didn't give him a response, he looked to where Maddie was gazing and sighed wistfully.

"He takes a great picture doesn't he Mads?" He commented, referring to one of Danny's more recent school photographs.

"My boy." She whispered sadly, rolling her head on to Jack's shoulder.

"Our boy." He corrected softly, setting his hand on top of hers.

He had been great the past few days, truly he had. Maddie didn't know where she'd be right now without him. She decided to discuss one of her issues now with Jack, before she lost the nerve. She lifted her head and looked him in the eyes.

"Jack, there's something important I have to talk to you about." She spoke softly.

"What is it Maddie?" He asked encouragingly. It had been difficult to get his once bubbly wife to speak since Danny passed away.

"The lab Jack, the ghost hunting…" She whispered tearfully, "I'm sorry, but I can't do it anymore."

Jack stared at his wife in shock for a few seconds. Give up ghost hunting? It was all they had ever known, it was their responsibility; leave the Guys in White to protect the townspeople of Amity Park if they stepped down? Jack knew he couldn't do it without Maddie, they were a team! Ghost hunting was what had brought them together, it was what made them fall in love…

"Maddie…this is a huge decision." Jack said seriously, "Are you sure it-"

"It's what killed Danny, Jack." Maddie hissed tearfully, "It's what took our boy and it's driving Jazz away from us. She's right. If we had focused less on ghosts and more on our family our son would still be alive right now!"

Jack breathed in deeply. Maddie seemed to be adamant about this. It's not like he didn't agree with her, and he would gladly pack the whole thing in tomorrow if he knew what they would do for a living instead. After all, they were funded by the government for their service to the city.

"I hear you loud and clear Maddie. But we need to think clearly, what would we do for money if we give up the ghost hunting?" Jack said softly, giving her hand a gentle squeeze.

"I don't care if I have to beg for money on the streets." Maddie answered darkly. "I will never put anyone at risk again as a result of hunting bloody ghosts. God, we should have known better. After what happened to Vlad Masters in college we should have known better!"

"Maddie don't." Jack soothed, "We can't dwell on the if's, and's, but's, or maybe's. All we can do is look forward. And you know that what happened to Vlad was an accident."

"It was a warning." Maddie said sharply, "A warning, and we ignored it. Well no more, I'm done ghost hunting Jack. If you want to continue with it, that's up to you and your conscience, but it won't be happening under my roof. As soon as I am able, I am destroying that lab and everything in it. Then I'm actually going to use my college degree and get myself a respectable job."

Jack and Maddie spent hours discussing their options and perspective's that evening. When they came to a final decision they wrote a note for the daughter and slipped it under her door, as they knew she would be still too angry and hurt to hear them out. They could only hope she'd read it before her anger drove her to tear it to shreds.


	8. When Bliss turns bad

Vlad and Danny relaxed contently in front of a roaring fire after a hard day packed with ghost training. Danny lay on his stomach on the floor, nearer to the fire whilst gazing up idly at the widescreen plasma T.V. Vlad on the other hand was resting comfortably in a chair and was reading up on the current stock market.

Danny shuffled around from time to time, his aching body telling him off for the unusual physical turmoil he'd put it through that day. Vlad noticed this and smirked to himself, he would have been surprised if Danny hadn't felt any discomforting aches from using his powers effectively for the first time. All in all however, Vlad had felt the day had been a success. Danny had been quick to pick up the basics of many ghostly abilities. He had mastered flying, and it was fairly obvious that he enjoyed the experience of gliding easily through the air. Danny had also grasped the concept of turning intangible and fazing through things. This had taken a little more time, as more focus was required on Danny's part. It hadn't helped that the boy had tried fazing through a wall and solidified half way through on a couple of occasions. Danny hadn't liked the feeling of having his arm or leg trapped inside a brick wall! And finally, the half ghost began to train the boy on how to form and throw ecto-blasts. Danny had just about gotten to grips on this, but Plasmius decided not to take the training any further beyond this today. He could tell that Danny's energy was running low, and if the boy attempted to learn new skills in this state he would be more apt to fail.

As if on cue, Danny yawned. Although as a ghost he technically didn't require sleep, Vlad could tell that the boy was in need of a good proper rest to recover his energy. A few seconds later, Danny's legs vanished. Vlad raised his eyebrows, Danny didn't seem to have noticed. They reappeared fairly quickly and the half ghost smiled, it looked as though Danny's body was finally getting used to and testing its ghostly status.

After spending an entire day with his new charge, Vlad retired to his bed. He was surprised to find that it seemed the boy could also be pleasant company, in a somewhat childish way. But Vlad decided that he didn't mind Danny's innocence too much, he believed that the boy could have great potential if allied to his guidance and vision.

Danny was also feeling content with how things were coming together. He was relieved to see that he was starting to develop physically as a ghost…and that Vlad wasn't necessarily a jerk all of the time. Danny switched the T.V off and stood up. It had been a couple of hours since Vlad had gone to bed, Danny didn't know what to do with his time. He knew trying to sleep would be pointless, he didn't even feel sleepy that much anyway. He didn't want to watch T.V all night, it generally sucked late at night anyway, and he wasn't going to bore himself with reading either.

Then Danny had a good idea. He remembered that Plasmius' lab was ghost proof, that's where they had good to practice shooting targets with ecto-blasts. Danny had been secretly disappointed when Plasmius decided to call it a day before he got a chance to try and hit one. He felt well enough rested now. Maybe that's how he could use his time, practice forming and shooting ecto-blasts at the targets. After a night's practice he would practically be a master at it, and Plasmius would see just how dedicated he was to learning ghost skills. Danny smiled at the idea and headed for the lab.

 **()()()**

In the Ghost Zone, Ember sat on Skulker's island, she was growing more angry and impatient waiting for the hunter to return. He had been gone over a full day. She knew her boyfriend had travelled out to see Plasmius again, she was no idiot, and she wanted to know what was happening with the ghost boy.

Eventually, after missing for nearly a day and a half, Skulker returned to his lair, musing over his latest findings. He had successfully located The Forgotten Tombs, but they were vaster than he had anticipated. Instead of attempting to raid the place at once, Skulker decided to mark the areas which looked as though to be of more interest and return to hunt another day.

He smiled innocently when he found Ember waiting for his return, not knowing that the singing ghost was angry at his disappearing act.

"Where've you been?" She snapped.

Skulker's eyes lit up. "Ember you won't believe it, I've finally located The Forgotten Tombs and they're-"

"The Forgotten…what?" Ember demanded, "What the hell were you doing out hunting in some old caves? I thought you were going to talk to Plasmius about the ghost boy."

"I did." Skulker replied simply.

"…And?"

"He was there." Skulker confirmed.

Ember rolled her eyes at the hunter. "Well we know he's there!" She yelled, "Did you find out anything else? Such as his abilities and when he's going to be back in the Ghost Zone without Plasmius' protection?"

Skulker averted his gaze. "Well no. Like I said the whelp was there, I couldn't really ask questions related to our hunt with the prey sitting in the same room now could I?"

"So you decide to go raid your blasted tombs instead?" Ember hissed, angry that her boyfriend hadn't got the job done.

"That's also an important matter!" Skulker retorted, "I couldn't pass it up, Plasmius gave me a rare map he's managed to obtain and I-"

"Wait. Plasmius gave you the map to these tombs?" Ember cried, "Skulker you moron! Don't you see? Plasmius gave you that map to send you off on a wild goose chase! He gave you that map as a distraction, he clearly doesn't want you snooping around that brat. Something's up."

Skulker silently thought for a moment. Was it possible that Plasmius had wanted him out of the way? The hunter knew himself that if he had choose to he could have been out exploring in the Ancient Realm for days on end. Had that been Plasmius' intention all along?

"Uh! It's not worth it being with you sometimes, Skulker." Ember moaned dramatically.

Skulker scowled at the insult. "I don't have to answer to you Ember! I'll get to the bottom of this!" He snapped, "See if I don't."

Skulker went on to inform Ember that he would return to Plasmius to get a more concrete answer, but it would have to wait a few hours as it was currently the middle of the night in the human world. There was no way Plasmius would give a friendly greeting let alone an explanation if he was woken from his sleep.

 **()()()**

Vlad got up at his usual early time the following morning. As he made his way casually down to the kitchen he heard a faded booming noise. Vlad found it strange and naturally he wondered what had caused it. As silence had returned after the noise Vlad walked on again. When he reached the ground floor the half ghost heard another booming sound. Louder this time. Vlad could guess the direction it came from as well, his lab.

Without hesitating, Vlad transformed into his ghost half and teleported to his lab to find out what or whom was creating the racket. Plasmius' eyes widened in alarm when he found Danny was in the lab. Had he forgotten to say to the young ghost not to go into his lab on his own or without permission? Plasmius' eyes darted nervously at the still deactivated ghost portal. And what was worse, the boy's hands were glowing green. Plasmius observed that Danny was forming ecto-blasts with easy precision. As Plasmius made himself visible again, Danny released the blast, and flung it towards one of the ghost proof targets which Plasmius had brought out the previous day. It seemed the boy was also practicing his aiming techniques.

"Daniel!" Plasmius snapped angrily, "What do you think you're doing?"

Danny spun himself round in surprise to find Plasmius stood a few feet behind him, watching him practice. Danny didn't like the cross expression on the half ghost's face, nor did he understand why he had barked at him in such a bad tempered tone.

"Just practising my ecto-blasts…like you taught me." Danny answered quietly. "I was just trying to get better, what's the matter?"

"The matter is you are down in my lab, which you are well aware has dangerous properties in it." Plasmius growled. "And did I not tell you to rest? How long have you been 'practising?'"

Danny swallowed. Why was Plasmius so upset? Danny was only trying to make an effort, but it seemed to have backfired for some reason.

"A…a couple hours." Danny mumbled worriedly, especially as he knew it had been much longer than that."

"Well you have been incredibly foolish." Plasmius stated bluntly, "Even if you have only been doing this for a 'couple of hours' and I don't believe that's all it's been judging by that look on your face, it will have used up a substantial amount of energy. I imagine that if you paused now for five minutes you will suddenly feel low and lethargic, at least. I hope your ecto-blast practice was successful because that's all the ghost training you'll be doing today."

Danny looked at Plasmius, his eyes wide with regret. "You don't want to teach me any new stuff today?" He asked unhappily.

"It would be pointless." Plasmius retorted, "It's unlikely that you will be able to make a fair attempt at anything new if your body is exhausted, I've told you several times ghost abilities require energy and focus. Two things you will be lacking if you've been up half the night throwing ecto-blasts."

Danny hung his head, gutted that he wouldn't get to try anything different today. And upset because Plasmius was clearly disappointed with him.

"Look at you, you're hands are shaking already." Plasmius sneered.

Danny took a closer look at his hands. They were very obviously trembling, and Danny wasn't about to admit it but he could feel them starting to burn slightly as well. Clearly the all-night practice hadn't been a good idea.

"You should go lie down." Plasmius said dryly. "You won't feel better until you're fully rested."

Without saying a word, Danny walked past Plasmius to exist the lab, feeling horribly judged.

"And you're to stay out of my lab unless you are instructed otherwise. Is that clear?" Plasmius added decisively without turning around to the boy.

"Yes." Danny answered meekly, continuing up the steps, more slowly now due to the weariness coming over him.

"Over anticipation." Plasmius mocked loudly as he walked across the lab to dismantle the targets, "I should have known this sort of stupidity would present as a problem, it's the 'Jack Fenton' genes coming out in you."

Danny stopped in his tracks. He felt his 'blood' boil at the insult the half ghost had directed at his father. Danny had been tempted to keep walking and let the jag slide by, he knew he was too tired and weak to starts any arguments. But Danny found himself turning around to defend his father.

"Don't you bring my dad into this." Danny called to Plasmius from the steps. "I don't care what you say or think about him I know he's a good man, and your anger and bitterness won't change that."

Plasmius had stopped what he was doing to listen to what the boy wanted to say. But now that he'd finished the half ghost scowled deeply, hardly believing what he'd just heard. He swung himself back around so he was facing the boy from a distance.

"Tread lightly, Daniel." Plasmius warned, "You would be highly unwise to pick a fight right now, remember? Especially as you know nothing about attacks or defence. Now get out of my sight."

Danny turned on his heel and continued out of the lab. "Gladly." He muttered under his breath.

When the boy was completely out of earshot Plasmius smirked. "At least now I know what I can use to get a rise out of him!" He said to himself, and he was right. In his experience, nine times out of ten it is anger which fuels a violent response in someone. Something which Plasmius knew he would need to teach the boy is how to fight when the time arose.

However, Plasmius did secretly hope that he could change Danny's views about Jack. The boy had clearly been deluded into thinking his father was this amazing person, as most children view their parents. But Plasmius decided that Danny deserved to understand the truth; his father was far from a 'good man'. And until the young ghost would accept the basic implementations of that, there was going to be a clash within the household.

 **()()()**

Several hours later Skulker passed through Plasmius' ghost portal. He grew more annoyed to find that the portal was still inactive when he reached it. It suggested that Vlad was deliberately taking precautions to protect the ghost child. When Skulker found Plasmius' lab deserted, he passed through the ceilings and re-solidified in Vlad's study, where the half ghost sat at his desk seemingly engrossed with paper work. He didn't look up when he heard the 'thud' of the hunters feet hit the floor.

"Plasmius." Skulker greeted his ally, determined not to be ignored.

Vlad sighed inwardly, "Skulker. I can't seem to get enough of you these days." Vlad put his pen down and looked up at the ghost. "To what do I owe the pleasure this time?"

"Where's the ghost child?" Skulker demanded. He needed to be sure there were no distractions or interruptions this time, Ember had made valid points before and this was turning into a serious issue.

"Aren't you going to tell me about your discoveries in The Forgotten Tombs?" Vlad prompted. The half ghost had really hoped that would have bought him more time than this, but he had forgotten to take note that a certain diva was also pressing the issue of Danny.

"No I'm not." Skulker stated, "Is he still here Plasmius?"

"Of course he is. Where else would he be?"

"Try the Ghost Zone, Plasmius. At least, that's where he should be."

Vlad got up from his chair and walked around the ghost, he opened one of his cabinets and pulled out a bottle and a glass. He wanted Skulker to see how disinterested in the topic he really was.

"What makes you say this, Skulker?" Vlad asked whilst pouring a drink.

"Well Plasmius, the truly obvious point would be because he's a ghost. And as such he belongs in the Ghost Zone just like the rest of us." Skulker replied through gritted teeth. "Not locked up in your fancy human castle with all the luxuries that come with it."

Vlad chuckled after he swallowed a mouthful of bourbon. "Skulker, don't tell me you're jealous of Daniel. You know you're welcome to stay in my castle anytime. Hell, you may be able to give that wretched Dairy King a run for his money!"

"Don't be ridiculous Plasmius!" Skulker snapped, "You know I have no desire to stay here. I'm perfectly content on my island in the Ghost Zone. Many a ghost would die again to have an abode as grand as mine!"

"So it doesn't bother you that Daniel stays here then?" Vlad cleverly asked.

"No. I mean yes! I mean…Plasmius we had a deal!" Skulker growled, "Stop trying to change the subject with your clever business talk. You said the brat would only be here on a short term basis and then you were tossing him to the Ghost Zone. How much longer do you need? You keep him much longer and you won't get rid of him, it'll be as if he's a human puppy"

Vlad narrowed his eyes at the ghost hunter, he hated to be challenged. "I made no such 'deal' Skulker. I said I would teach him how to be a ghost, and that takes time. Certainly longer than two days! He'll go into the Ghost Zone when I deem him ready, you know this."

"And when he does you'll be with him, no doubt." Skulker said bitterly. "Admit it Plasmius, you have no intention of letting the whelp go do you? This all goes back to whatever 'business' you had with the Fenton's all those years ago. I knew there was something up the other night. I never should have brought him here, should've just wasted him there and then!"

"Enough Skulker!" Vlad shouted at his ally, "You have no idea what you're talking about. Just leave."

"No. I'm not leaving here without an explanation." Skulker retorted. "You owe me that much Plasmius, I've done too much for you to justify blowing me off like you've been doing since that brat came on the scene."

"Fine." Vlad replied, forcefully setting down his glass. "You're right Skulker, I do have no intention of sending Daniel back into the Ghost Zone. Why would I? Like you said the other night he's an anomaly, just like me. The opportunities which could arise from that with the proper training and planning are infinite. We could accomplish great things together. The fact that he's Maddie Fenton's son is just a nice bonus. So your hunt on him is off. You can go back to the Ghost Zone and report that to your bothersome girlfriend also. You two are the only ones who are aware of who Daniel really is, I plan on keeping it that way."

Skulker stood and listened, dumbfounded. His employer sounded nothing short of insane with what he was describing, although it did fit with Vlad's power hungry personality.

"So that's it then?" Skulker demanded angrily, "You're getting rid of all of your allies, including me, in favour of this ghost brat?"

Vlad met Skulker's stare. "I'm saying no such thing Skulker. I still want to work closely with you and Fright Knight and even those idiot Russian vultures, I just want Daniel included also."

Skulker banged his fist off Vlad's table with frustration. He walked to the other side of the room, quickly gathering his thoughts. He knew to break an alliance with Plasmius would be foolish, but would he be just as foolish to be an ally to a novice ghost brat with human ghost hunting parents?

"But why? How can you expect me, or anyone to look past who he is?" Skulker demanded. "His parents are responsible for crushing the opportunity of moving on for hundreds of ghosts. Not to mention ceasing the existence of an unfortunate few." He added darkly.

"I know." Vlad answered solemnly, "I know it's a lot to ask of you Skulker, all I ask is that you do not do anything rash. This is nothing against you or anyone else. It's just something I have to do."

Skulker frowned at his employer, this was not how he had expected or wanted this conversation to go. He decided to leave the premises before Vlad would say or do anything else to make the ultimatum worse. Vlad stood thoughtfully for moment after his associate left, wondering if the decision he had made had been a wise one. Particularly after that morning's run-in with Danny.

 **()()()**

Meanwhile elsewhere in the castle, Danny lay on his vast bed. He too was feeling equally miserable and conflicted. His body was now incredibly painful from the vigorous activities he had endured several hours earlier, preventing him from drifting off into a much needed sleep. So instead he lay on the bed, trying not to move, contemplating his thoughts.

He was particularly angry at Vlad Masters at this moment, all this pain was because of him after all. Danny couldn't believe how harsh he had been, he was so sure the half ghost would have applaud his extreme efforts, even though it knocked a hitch in the training schedule. Although Danny was disappointed with the results of his efforts, it was Vlad's attack on Danny's father which was really annoying him. How was Danny going to live with a man with such negative feelings towards Jack? It became obvious to the half ghost that this was going to be an issue which would be difficult to overcome.

Danny groaned in pain. He'd literally only moved his arm an inch. He really wasn't enjoying being a ghost right now. And he really really wasn't going to enjoy it if it meant having to walk on eggshells all the time to prevent Vlad from losing his temper.

He thought about his family. He was really starting to miss them. It was beginning to sink in that being a ghost meant that he would really never see them again. Danny's eyes began to sting. As he blinked, a few tears dripped down from his eyes. His hands were too sore to even attempt to wipe them away, so he did his best to bury his head into the pillow. At some point when doing this Danny closed his eyes, and he finally fell into a much needed sleep.


	9. The camera don't lie

Vlad felt dismayed the entire day. He feared his disagreements with Skulker would create major issues. If word about Danny got to Fright Knight then he would likely experience similar conflict with him as well. But Vlad's biggest fear was Ember, he worried the diva would go to extreme lengths to get her hands on Danny and may rally the entire Ghost Zone to help her. No doubt they would, as the majority of them had a grudge against the Fenton's. Vlad could only pray that Skulker would remain loyal enough to him to control the situation. But he knew himself that that had been a big ask, and because the outcome was unknown it left both Danny and Vlad in vulnerable positions.

Vlad sighed heavily and went to pour himself another drink. He wouldn't describe himself as a big drinker but since he took Danny in he often found himself yearning for more, or more so the feeling of relaxation which came with it. There was no doubt that the stress and potential consequences which came with minding the boy were great. Not to mention the mental energy he required in order to physically work with the boy.

However, the day was nearing its end and Vlad hadn't had any contact with Danny since their spat early that morning. He knew the boy needed rest but he believed that Danny was also trying to deliberately avoid him for a while. He scowled as he recalled what had happened. Vlad felt his response had been justified, but it was clear now that Danny was much more stubborn and proud than Vlad had first given him credit for. He was certain now that he would be in for a challenge by keeping the boy at his side.

That being said, Vlad still felt it would be worth it. He had recently been growing fearful that all of his years of hoping and planning were wasted, and that he would never get the woman he had always dreamed for. Now he had the next best thing: Maddie's son. Of course Vlad was aware Danny would never truly be his 'son' in either of their minds, but it still felt great to have someone who also had a deep connecting bond with Maddie. And Vlad felt that by training Danny up to be his apprentice would be fulfilling and rewarding in many ways. It may even offer him some distraction away from Maddie.

Vlad found himself heading down to his lab. All of his thoughts and concerns surrounding Danny had naturally driven him to ponder about Maddie also. Vlad had to see her. As he expertly typed on his large keyboard and computer devices he realised that he had not 'checked in' on Maddie since well before Danny's accident in the lab.

Once the correct keys and passwords had been interjected, the large screen lit up and displayed a live view of several rooms from within the Fenton household. Vlad's eyes skimmed over them eagerly. He quickly caught sight of Maddie sitting on the couch in her living room. Vlad enhanced the camera to focus on this one room.

"Maddie…" He breathed out.

She looked so upset and downcast she was practically only a shadow of the woman he loved. He hated seeing her like this, and it bothered him that the only person hindering her happiness was currently pouting upstairs in his home instead of being with her. Unbeknownst to her.

Vlad's thoughts were interrupted by a booming voice. Vlad glared as he saw Jack Fenton appear on the screen. But at least now was his chance to see if Danny's death had caused any damage to their marriage…

"Maddie, did you hear me?" Jack asked his wife in a more gentle tone, "The mac and cheese is ready. It's not even that badly burnt this time."

Vlad watched as Jack was trying to coax his wife into eating something, not at all caring about laws and privacy rights which he was currently violating and had done so many times before. He was much too engrossed in the life of Maddie to care, especially now, as her wellbeing could decline as a result of her loss.

"Why hasn't she said anything yet Jack?" Maddie asked quietly, ignoring her husband's encouragement to eat.

"She will Maddie. Just give her time." Jack replied firmly.

"Do you think she even read the letter?" She asked despairingly.

"I did." Called a voice from the top of the stairs of the Fenton's home.

Vlad frowned in confusion and continued to sip his alcoholic beverage as he watched Maddie's daughter come into view of the hidden camera. What in the world was going on in that house? Why were they discussing a letter for Jasmine, when they should be fighting over whose fault Daniel's death was.

"Jazz!" Jack and Maddie called out, as she made her way down the stairs. It was obvious the couple were delighted over their daughter's presence.

Jazz stood at the bottom of the staircase and was silent for a few seconds, biting her lip. Jack and Maddie also waited in silence, with great anticipation it would seem.

"Is what you wrote in this letter true?" Jazz finally asked, holding up the piece of paper her parents had slid under her door the night before.

"Yes sweetie. Every word of it." Maddie answered, tears welling in her eyes.

"Dad?" Jazz persisted, walking closer to her parents. "You're really quitting on ghost hunting?"

Vlad Masters dropped his glass and allowed it to smash into pieces around his feet. He gasped in shock of the words which had just come out of the girl's mouth.

Jack Fenton reached out his arm and took his wife's hand, he took his daughter's with the other. He then looked into her eyes and said, "No ghost will ever again be important than my family."

Jazz burst into tears as Jack sat down next to Maddie and pulled her in between them. Maddie wrapped her arms around her daughter and Jack wrapped his arms around them both.

"I'm so sorry for all those horrible things I said." Jazz cried to her parents, "I know it was an accident I was wrong to try and blame you!"

"Shh. That doesn't matter anymore." Maddie consoled her daughter shakily. "What matters now is that we stay strong, and support each other as a family. Right Jack?"

"Right Mads. Jack confirmed, "And once we're all feeling more like ourselves that lab and everything in it is gone. We'll make The Guy's in Whites earn their pay for a change!"

"But what will you guys do for jobs?" Jazz asked worriedly, wiping tears from her eyes.

"We both have science degrees from college." Maddie told her, "Damon Gray is always pestering us for support down at Axion labs, so maybe we have a shot at using our experience with machinery for nine to five work down there."

"Or we could see if they're recruiting any new scientists on Mythbusters." Jack said half-jokingly.

Jazz and Maddie chuckled lightly at Jack's comment.

"I love you guys." Jazz said earnestly.

Vlad turned the cameras off at this point. He couldn't watch any more proof of the family's unity. For what's more, he still couldn't get his head around that he had just heard from Jack and Maddie themselves that they were quitting ghost hunting!

"How is this possible?" Vlad voiced out loud.

Vlad was hoping that the death of their son meant that there was a possibility of their marriage coming to an end, not that that was looking likely judging by how close they had just been…But he didn't think that anything would stop either of them from continuing with their passion of hunting down ghosts! No doubt this was a very good outcome for all ghosts, very good indeed.

Vlad's eyes widened at the thought. If Danny's death has been the result of Jack and Maddie giving up ghost hunting, then Skulker and Ember may not want to waste the boy anymore. Vlad quickly decided that there was no time to lose, he transformed into Plasmius and activated his ghost postal, making his way to Skulker's Island.

…Forgetting to deactivate the portal in the process.

It only took a matter of minutes to reach the hunter's island from the location of Vlad's portal. However he was sure he could hear the screaming and shouting at half the distance. When he landed on the island he realised that he would be interrupting a huge argument between Ember and Skulker, and it didn't take three guesses to know who the argument was about.

"You!" Ember screamed when she caught sight of Plasmius, "You hand over that ghost boy right now you half ghost freak!"

"Charming as always, Ember." Plasmius greeted her dryly, rolling his eyes.

"You have no right to keep that kid locked away from us Plasmius," Ember continued, "I saw him first, and I'll tell the whole Ghost Zone who he is and they'll all come after you. You won't be so big and tough then!"

"Shut up Ember!" Skulker boomed.

The ghost hunter was severely angry with both individuals in his presence. Which was why he was just about to leave on a long hunting trip, to finish what he had started in The Forgotten Tombs until this nonsense with Plasmius and the ghost boy blew over.

"Don't you tell me to shut up Skulker, you can't deny you're equally annoyed about this screwy situation as I am!" Ember scoffed.

Skulker glared at her. Then at Plasmius. It was true, the half ghost had put him in a horrible position and he was not in the mood to listen to more drivel about the Fenton's kid from him twice in one day.

"Well if you would give me a minute to speak I actually have some information about the ghost child which may be of interest to you both." Plasmius said smoothly.

"What, did he learn how to fly today?" Skulker sneered.

"No!" Plasmius snapped, "He did that yesterday, as a matter of fact. But that's not important, what I'm here to tell you is that I have just learned, first hand, that the ghost hunters Jack and Maddie Fenton from Amity Park will no longer be hunting ghosts."

Both Ember and Skulker's eyes widened in shock.

"What?" They both shouted in unison.

"Indeed. Heard it from their mouths myself, all of ten minutes ago." Plasmius confirmed.

"What do you mean they aren't hunting ghosts anymore?" Ember demanded, "Why?"

"Because of Daniel's death." Plasmius answered, "From what I gather, because his death was a result of a ghost related invention they are turning their backs on their profession all together. Just thought you would like to know, now Amity Park is a free for all if you don't count The Guys in White."

"Incredible." Skulker mused, taking in the information.

"This is great!" Ember squealed with excitement.

"Yes I thought it would be pleasing to you both. I suppose now that's sorted you won't be interested in 'wasting' Daniel anymore." Plasmius said smoothly.

Ember glared at the half ghost, "What makes you say that?"

"Well if it wasn't for him joining you in the Ghost Zone his parents would still be a threat wouldn't they?" Plasmius debated, "His death put an end to their ghost hunting days, if anything you owe him a debt of gratitude!"

"We owe that whelp nothing!" Skulker snapped. "But I take your point."

"What!" Ember hissed, "Speak for yourself, I still want to punch his lights out _permanently_. And it doesn't matter that the Fenton's stopped ghost hunting, so will the rest of the Ghost Zone once they find out who he is."

"Ah but they don't need to find out do they, Ember?" Plasmius chimed, "There's no reason why his identity can't stay our little secret, don't you think so?"

Skulker shook his head and smiled to himself as walked off to locate one of his favourite knives. He knew Plasmius' head would be turned by the time he would strike up a reasonable understanding with Ember.

"What's in it for me?" Ember demanded, on cue.

Plasmius adverted his eyes momentarily to check that Skulker was out of eye and ear shot. He then quickly grabbed the diva by her throat, slamming her against a wall. His grasp tightened and his eyes glowed menacingly.

"Because if you don't I will see to it that your vocal chords will be permanently silenced, never to sing another note or speak another word!" He threatened in a low voice, "Understand?"

Ember could barely nod a 'yes,' but Plasmius released her.

"Good. Glad we came to an understanding." The half ghost stated.

"What?" Skulker blurted in disbelief, as he walked back in carrying an unpractically large knife.

How could Plasmius have talked Ember round so quick?

"Ember now sees things from my perspective and has agreed to leave Daniel alone. Isn't that correct Ember?"

Ember merely grunted in response, she was more focused on not rubbing her throbbing neck in case Skulker became suspicious and she'd anger the half ghost more.

"I see." Skulker replied, unconvinced. "I still don't understand what you want with him Plasmius, but it's your business I suppose."

"Indeed it is." Plasmius confirmed. "On that note, I bid you both a good evening."

Plasmius then existed the island to make his way back to his portal.

Ember and Skulker looked at one another.

"You work for a right psychopath, you know that?" Ember mocked.

"Maybe. But it's very rewarding work, I assure you." Skulker replied. "Anyway I'm fully prepared to leave for The Forgotten Tombs now."

"What, you're still leaving?" Ember barked.

Skulker frowned at her. "Of course, why wouldn't I?"

"We're not fighting anymore! You don't have to leave!" Ember cried.

"Okay. Right. Well, see you in a couple days!" Skulker jeered as his jet rockets flew him off the island at great speed, leaving the diva ghost alone.

Ember sighed irritably, hating that yet again Skulker's passion for hunting had a greater grip on him than she did. "Goddamn!" She growled.

 **()()()**

Desiree grinned and her eyes sparkled when she saw that Plasmius' portal was finally active again. It was like a huge welcoming sign beckoning her to come inside, and she felt overjoyed by it. She flew through into Plasmius' lab with ease and set off inside the castle to locate the half ghost.

Desiree was disappointed to find that Vlad was not in any of his favourite rooms, suggesting that he was not home at all. The genie ghost continued to search all of the rooms in the vast home, and eventually included the spare bedrooms in her wonderings. Desiree gasped and froze when she discovered a young ghost lying very still on a bed in one of these rooms.

"What is the meaning of this?" She snarled irritably.

To her, it appeared as though a young vagrant ghost had taken advantage of Vlad's open portal and was secretly staying in his home. However, she did not understand why he was sleeping, ghosts rarely slept…

Danny stirred in his sleep as a familiar cold tingle travelled up his body, and exist through his mouth. He opened his eyes and shot upright when he caught sight of Desiree looming over him.

"Who are you?" They shouted at each other simultaneously.

"You shouldn't be here!" Desiree roared at the young ghost, "When the occupier of this castle returns you will regret your trespassing you vile ghost."

Danny could only stare at the ghost in front of him, once again he felt fear overcoming him. All he currently knew about any ghost was that they all wanted to waste him because of his parents. At least that's what had told him anyway. But then again this ghost seemed to know who Vlad was, maybe if Danny clarified the situation she might not threaten him, just as Skulker hadn't when he met him.

"Vlad knows I'm here, I'm not trespassing. Honest." Danny explained as calmly as he could manage, "I'm Danny. Danny…Phantom."

Desiree frowned at Danny, not sure if she believed him or not.

"How come I've never seen you before, Danny Phantom?" Desiree demanded.

Danny lowered his head and bit his lip. He still didn't like thinking about the fact he was dead let alone talking to a strange ghost about it. He was still coming to terms with it, and it was still painful. But he knew that if he didn't explain himself to this ghost there was a possibility that she would harm him. He just had to remember to pretend he was like any other ghost and couldn't remember anything…especially not his parents.

"I…I'm new-ish. I died recently and Vlad, he sorta took me in…I guess." He stammered.

Desiree raised her eyebrows. She pondered why on earth Vlad would take in a random ghost child. But then a more important thought crossed her mind, one that made her smile. If this was a new ghost, then chances were he didn't know about her wish granting abilities yet. She could finally get the power surge she had been yearning for the past several days!

"You're a new ghost?" Desiree asked with false sympathy, trying to contain her wicked grin. "Oh my, I'm sure it's been a really tough time for you then, and you're so young too."

Danny sighed, and could only nod. If only she knew the half of it. Desiree smiled a sickly false smile and planted herself down on the bed next to Danny and put her arm around him. Danny stiffened slightly, unsure of how he felt about this unfamiliar yet overly forward ghost getting so close to him. He didn't know who she was or where she even came from. But he contented himself with the fact that it was better than her trying to waste him.

As much as Desiree wanted to get a 'wish' out of the boy, she also wanted to know what Vlad was doing with him. From what she knew, he wasn't really a kid person, she couldn't think of any reason why Vlad would want him at all.

"It was really nice of Vlad to look after you as well, wasn't it?" Desiree probed, "Most new ghosts have to look out for themselves and my word, humans think it's a dog eat dog world? They don't know they're living until they've seen the Ghost Zone. Literally."

Danny remained quiet. He didn't really know what the ghost was talking about, and he didn't really care. He wanted to be left alone, he was feeling pretty miserable since Vlad snapped at him that morning, and wasn't sure how he was going to manage with the billionaire's inconsistent moods. He was worried things would only get worse.

Desiree ignored Danny's silence and continued to press the issue, "So what have you and Vlad been doing together, young Phantom?"

Danny sighed loudly, not really wanting to have to confide in this strange ghost. "He was teaching me some ghost skills, like flying and ecto-blasts. But I over did it and can't learn anything new for a while, and now he's mad at me."

"Aw. I'm sure he's not _really_ mad at you." Desiree cooed, "Vlad can just be a little impatient sometimes. He probably just can't wait to get you all properly trained up is all. I'm sure you can't wait either…don't you just _wish_ that you could have instant control over all of your ghost powers?"

Desiree's eyes narrowed at the boy, and she held her breath for a greatly anticipated response. All she needed was one little 'yes' and she could create turmoil for Danny. It would be great get back in the game!


	10. Don't know or don't remember

Vlad winced when he got back to his portal and found he had left it activated.

"Butter Biscuits!" He swore to himself.

He quickly transported through and shut it down on the other side. He could have kicked himself for not deactivating it when he travelled through earlier. He then made his way to Danny's room to check on him. Vlad was certain the boy would be fine, he knew Danny would have stayed out of the lab given the doing off he'd previously received for being down there alone. So there was no fear regarding the boy accidently wondering into the Ghost Zone. And as for other ghosts venturing through, that too was unlikely, given that very few knew of its whereabouts.

When Vlad fazed into Danny's room, he panicked when he saw Desiree sitting with the boy. The genie ghost greeted Vlad with her usual seductive pearly smile. Danny kept a blank expression, for he never knew what mood Vlad would be in.

"Desiree!" Vlad exclaimed, "Daniel, please don't tell me you've wished for anything."

"Huh?" Danny responded, confused by Vlad's concern…Perhaps this overly friendly ghost was dangerous after all?

"Oh come now, Vlad." Desiree charmed, standing up and swaying towards the half ghost, "Danny and I were merely having a friendly chat is all. Nothing for you to worry about." She lied.

Vlad eyed the genie ghost warily. "You need to leave." He said firmly.

Desiree's demeanour hardened. "Why are you always sending me away?" she demanded, "Is it because of him? Are you trying to hide him from me?"

Danny squirmed uncomfortably as Desiree pointed her long manicured finger at him. What had he done wrong now?

"No Desiree." Vlad answered calmly, "I just don't want you to grant any wishes around him in case something were to go wrong. He's too naïve to be around a ghost like you yet."

Danny frowned at Vlad, feeling confused and somewhat insulted. As did Desiree.

"Oh, a ghost like me, huh? So what if I granted a wish for him right now? It could turn out great. You know nothing, Vlad Plasmius!" She snapped at him, before turning back to Danny.

"Go ahead child, make your wish." She coaxed, "Wish that you could master all of your ghost powers instantly!"

"What? No!" Shouted Vlad, "Desiree don't be stupid, if all of his powers build up at once in his core so suddenly, it could damage it!"

Danny stared at the genie ghost. Could she really grant him any wish? He jumped slightly as Vlad continued to condemn her even louder for trying to get a wish out of him. Why did Vlad not want him to make a wish? Was he worried that he would try to wish himself away from Wisconsin? Danny knew the only thing he truly wished for was to turn back time and keep himself and his friends away from that ghost portal. But he knew there is no way reversing time and death would be possible with any ghost magic, not to mention the possible consequences which could come about even if it were. But if Danny couldn't wish for that, then there was one other thing he truly wanted and knew could be possible…

"Desiree enough!" Vlad yelled at her, his anger more apparent. "Leave now!"

Desiree scowled at him, equally angry, "Vlad, I-"

"I wish that my family friends won't feel any more pain or loss over my death." Danny spoke loudly and clearly.

Danny was feeling horrible over missing his family and friends, and guilty because he knew they would be feeling the same, if not worse because of his death. He didn't want that. He didn't want them to hurt over something that had been his fault, and he could have prevented with some common sense. So he made the wish in hope that the genie ghost would take the pain away from them.

Vlad gasped, horrified. Desiree grinned, absolutely thrilled.

"So you have wished it, so it shall be!" She cried.

"No!" Vlad yelled, but of course this made no difference. Once Desiree heard a wish, she was obligated to fulfil it.

She conjured her hands around one another to create what appeared to be sparkly pink dust, but was in fact her magic. She then clenched her fingers and created a huge gust of air which swirled around all three ghosts, and eventually removed all of the magic from the room. Once the air had calmed, Vlad turned to Desiree in revulsion.

"What did you do?" He demanded.

"I granted his wish. The boy's family and friends will no longer feel pain over his recent death." Desiree concluded happily. "I feel fantastic, what a great wish! I've never had that one before, no ghost really cares about their family and friends because they don't remember them."

"So it definitely worked?" Danny asked curiously.

"Of course!" Desiree retorted, "I wouldn't grant a wish I cannot deliver on."

"Yes, well just how did it work Desiree?" Vlad pursued, "How did you take away those painful emotions from Daniel's family and friends?"

"Simple. I wiped their memory of him, of every human who knew him. They can't miss him if they didn't know he ever existed!" Desiree smiled.

"What!" Danny cried, "They forgot I existed!"

"Oh no." Vlad whispered dejectedly.

This was horrific. Danny didn't want them to forget about him! He just wanted to end any feelings of loss they had. Now he practically never existed as a human.

"How could you make them forget about me? That's not what I wished for!" Danny screamed desperately at the genie ghost. "Take it back! Take it back now!"

Desiree scowled at the ungratefulness of the younger ghost, she felt she had done a pretty good job of such a tricky wish. "Don't be ridiculous!" She snapped at him, "Wiping everyone's memory was the easiest way of completing a large affecting wish like that. Besides you can't take wishes back. Once they're made, they're made. I don't know what your problem is, why does it matter if you're forgotten? It's not like _you_ can remember them anyway!"

Danny heard this, and his lip began to quiver and his eyes began to sting. He had actually wished away his life. Vlad gave the boy a sad look, even he knew that what had just happened was harsh and greatly unfair, even by his cold standards. Desiree looked back and forth between the two downcast ghosts, confused by their reaction to her wish.

"What?" She demanded, "What was wrong with my wish? Why is the memory wipe such a problem?"

"Desiree…Just go." Vlad said coldly. For the first time in his life the billionaire felt completely lost for words, and was more concerned by the fact that Danny appeared to be on the brink of tears. "You've done enough."

Desiree stared miserably at Vlad for a second or two, feeling on the brink of tears herself. What had she done wrong now? Why was it that everything she said or did recently, repulsed the man? She decided she could say no more, and vanished herself out of the half ghost's home, to find a dimension tear to take her back to the Ghost Zone.

When Desiree left Vlad turned his attention back to Danny, who was now sitting back on the edge of the bed. He slowly walked over to the boy. Danny raised his head and looked up at the billionaire, tears were slowly running down from each eye.

"I can't believe what I've just done." He whispered sadly to the half ghost.

"Nor me." Vlad replied. He pulled a handkerchief out from his breast pocket with one hand and put the other around the back of Danny's head, before proceeding to dry his tears. A sob escaped from Danny as he did this. He was not familiar with this more gentle side to Vlad Masters.

"I should have given you a fairer warning about Desiree." Vlad sighed, sitting down on the bed beside Danny. "What's more I should have been more alert, and not have left the portal active for her to get in."

Danny shook his head sadly, "No, it's my fault. You told me not to wish for anything, and you tried to send her away.

Another sob came over Danny and Vlad's developing fondness for the boy compelled him to improve on his comforting skills. He gently rubbed Danny's shoulder.

"There now, Daniel. It'll be alright." He soothed, he knew this wish had been huge backfire for Danny but he also knew it wouldn't be the end of the world. "It's not like Desiree removed you from existence, believe me I've seen her do that. I think she watched 'It's a wonderful life' one too many times."

"At least it had a happy ending." Danny mumbled. "Vlad, how come your memory of me didn't get wiped?"

"Hm, I believe she said every _human_ who knew you. I don't believe I met the criteria as I'm only half human." Vlad explained.

Danny nodded understandably and sighed. "At least I know they're happy now." He said, thinking about those he had made the wish for.

"Yes, but now you're more miserable than ever." Vlad pointed out truthfully. "We're going to have to fix that won't we?"

"Does that mean you're not mad at me anymore for practicing in your lab all night?" Danny asked hopefully.

"You told me it was 'only a couple of hours." Vlad scowled.

Danny quickly looked at the floor, and the half ghost chuckled at him.

"No I'm not mad. And I wasn't mad then, not really. I just don't like it when I'm not listened to. Maybe now you see why, as unfortunate things tend to happen to you when you don't listen."

Danny didn't respond, but he knew the half ghost was right, he did tend to have a slight rebellious nature whether he meant or not.

"What I'm I gonna do?" Danny wondered out loud.

Vlad raised his eyebrows in confusion. "You will do what you were doing before you made that wish. You'll stay here and train up you're ghost abilities."

"But I don't want to be a ghost." Danny mumbled sadly. "I should have asked that strange ghost to turn me into a human, my body still behaves like it's one anyway!"

Vlad threw back his head and laughed loudly at the outrageous statement the younger ghost had made.

"What?" Danny demanded angrily, cross because the man had laughed at him.

"Daniel. I can't even imagine the horrific outcome that may have come with kind of wish." Vlad explained, "Although it would be nice to know why you still have humanly functions. Are you hungry by any chance? You haven't eaten since you've been avoiding me."

Danny winced slightly at Vlad' jag. "I don't really feel like eating."

Vlad stood up and gently pulled Danny by the arm, "Come on now, you won't feel better by starving yourself."

Danny glared slightly at Vlad. He didn't like being bossed about by this man who was still practically a stranger to him. But then after the wish he'd made, he was now a stranger to everyone else. It wouldn't be wise to push away the only other individual in the universe who even slightly cared for his wellbeing. So Danny gave in, and let Vlad coax him into eating something.

 **()()()**

Later on that night, the middle of the night to be precise, Vlad paced the floor of his bedroom, unable to sleep. He desperately wanted to check in on the Fenton's again, for he was fearful that as a result of Danny's wish, they would forget about the accident, and forget that they had sworn off ghost hunting as a result. This could be very dangerous for all involved, as he was sure that by now Ember would have spread this news to at least a few ghosts, and they would be more than eager to make a Fenton-free visit to Amity Park. They could be in for a shock to find that Jack and Maddie Fenton may actually still be in business.

There was no point in checking now as the family would be asleep, and he couldn't do so earlier as he had to attend to Danny, and the boy himself had only fallen asleep about an hour ago after hours of tormenting himself about the situation. Vlad wasn't sure how he would explain that he had been spying on the boy's family since before he was even born, so it was easier for him not to find out about the cameras at all.

Vlad prayed that the circumstance hadn't changed, if they did it would mean Ember, at least, would target Danny again. Vlad knew that if word got out and if several ghosts did decide to come after Danny, he would struggle to protect him. And he couldn't allow him to get hurt, not Maddie's son. It didn't matter to him whether or not she remembered having him as her son or not, he was still her son, and that was important to Vlad. Not to mention he had made a promise to the boy, and he wasn't going to go back on that either.

Vlad stopped pacing when he heard a loud crash. It sounded like it came from the next floor down. Vlad quickly fazed through his bedroom floor and flew around the rooms to see if he could find the cause of the noise. He halted when he found Danny struggling to get off his knees in one of the sitting rooms. He was face down on the floor on top of a broken glass coffee table.

Vlad landed softly on the floor and made himself visible again.

"Daniel are you alright?" He asked alarmingly, only to get an inaudible grunt as a response, as he leaned down and tried to help the boy on to his feet. Luckily he didn't appear to be hurt, just disorientated.

Danny used Vlad for balance for several seconds and attempted to regain hold of his senses. Eventually he was able to mumble groggily, "What happened?"

"I was hoping you could tell me, little badger." Vlad responded, still physically ensuring that Danny remained on his feet.

"I don't know…" Danny babbled, looking around and not quite recognising the room. "Where am I? This isn't my bedroom."

"Your bedroom?" Vlad repeated in confusion.

Vlad wondered for a minute if the boy had been sleep walking. It would explain his disorientation, and why he was still half asleep. Then Vlad thought about where Danny's bedroom was actually located in the house, and smiled. It was directly above the very room they were stood in.

"Not to worry Daniel, I think you may have fazed through your bed in your sleep." Vlad concluded.

Danny let go of Vlad and vigorously rubbed his sleepy eyes. "I did what?" He asked in disbelief.

"You fazed through the bed. It's just your body becoming used to normal ghost movements. It's nothing to worry about, you'll be able to control it soon enough." Vlad said reassuringly.

"I fazed through the bed." Danny repeated, staring up at the ceiling. "What, is that like the ghostly equivalent to wetting the bed?" He asked irritably.

Vlad blinked at the boy's reaction. He hadn't expected him to be this upset by such a minor incident.

"No, it can just happen sometimes. It's completely normal, it happened to you the other night in the living room as well, your legs turned intangible and you didn't notice. It's just your body practicing its abilities." Vlad explained.

"Well I wish it wouldn't." Danny said gloomily before walking off, heading back up to his room.

Vlad sighed, he decided that the boy didn't want to be followed. He had noticed a prominent decline in the boy's mood and hoped he would come round eventually. The half ghost yawned, realising it was time for him to also try and get some sleep. He knew he wouldn't be any use to anyone if he continued worrying and not getting enough rest.

 **()()()**

Desiree sat in an old secluded area of the Ghost Zone in which to mope. She had managed to grant the wishes of two un-expecting humans before returning, but even the additional power boost she had received from this had not been enough to improve her mood.

The genie ghost had been shedding a few bitter tears for Vlad Masters, she had felt horribly rejected from her last encounter in his home. Why had he been so cruel to her? Why had he shamed her for something he knew was in her nature? Especially as he knew she had been suffering from a dry spell with her wish granting lately, and was desperate for any opportunity she could find.

"It was all that insufferable brat's fault!" Desiree hissed to herself. "If only he had been grateful for the wish I'd given him Vlad wouldn't have sent me away like that."

Desiree continued to attempt to dry her tears, in vain, when she heard a noise close by to her.

"Whose there?" She snapped, angry because someone was interrupting her alone space. She didn't know how it was possible, she didn't know of any other ghost who knew of this location. Apart from-

"You!" A familiar annoying voice boomed.

Desiree grimaced when she caught sight of Skulker, making a path for himself out of the rubble.

"What are you doing here?" Skulker scorned at the much disliked ghost before him.

"Belief it or not hunter ghost, _I_ practically discovered these ruins." Desiree sneered at him. "How did you learn of this location?"

"Plasmius rewarded me with a map to these whereabouts." Skulker said proudly.

Desiree's shoulder's drooped. "Of course he did." She sighed.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Skulker demanded. "You think I'm not capable of finding my own ruins?"

"No, it was me who gave the map to Plasmius in the first place." She said sadly.

She had secretly hoped that one day Vlad would use the map himself to come and meet up with Desiree. She had hoped that it would be 'their special place.'

Skulker peered curiously at the genie ghost. It appeared she wasn't her usual arrogant self, and it looked as though she'd been crying. Skulker of all people did not care for this ghost, but even he was curious to know what had happened to her to knock her spirit so low that she wouldn't even insult him.

"What's wrong with you, you old mage?" Skulker queried, "Someone steal your fairy wand?"

"No. I granted a bad wish." Desiree confided, Skulker's insult not registering with her.

"Like that's ever bothered you before!" Skulker jeered, "I thought you get a kick out of granting bad wishes. Whose wish was it?"

"It was some ghost kid." Desiree answered, "But the ghost kid is staying with Vlad, and when he got upset with the wish Vlad got upset with me."

"Ghost kid?" Skulker yelled, "Desiree what happened? What did the whelp wish for?"

"Why do you care?" Desiree sneered.

"Because Plasmius is my ally and I need to know if something that whelp has done has affected him in any way." Skulker answered firmly with his loyalty in mind.

"Relax metal man, Vlad's fine. The boy wished for his family and friends to not suffer any more sadness from his death. So I erased the memory of his existence from all those who knew him when he was alive." Desiree explained. "It made sense, he can't remember them, so now they can't remember him. I don't know why the boy got so upset, or why Vlad even cared for that matter it was a purely justified wish."

"Ah, but this pup can remember his family." Skulker smiled knowingly.

The hunter then dropped his knife in shock when he realised the major mistake he had just made.

"What?" Desiree probed, "What do you mean he remembers them. That's not possible."

"Well, no. No of course he doesn't but I've I've met this whelp and it would appear that he, eh, _thinks_ he remembers." Skulker stammered, in attempt to cover up his previous outburst, "Think the whelp is in serious denial to be honest."

"No. No I think what you said before was true!" Desiree accused, "There has to be an explanation why he responded the way he did, and why Vlad would put up with such a ridiculous display. I bet you know why the brat is there in the first place, don't you Skulker?"

"I don't know what you're talking about." Skulker bluffed.

"Yes you do, liar." Desiree hissed, "Well I don't need to hear half-truths from you! I'll get Vlad to tell me himself. As soon as he opens his portal again he'll have me to answer to!"

Desiree then vanished away from the tombs within a large puff of her trademark sparkly green smoke.

Skulker watched in annoyance as the display faded into nothing.

"Damn that ghost mage!" He cursed, "How am I going to talk myself out of this one?"

 **()()()**

 **So so SO sorry about the delayed update! I'll update the next chapter a little more swiftly to make it up! Hope you are enjoying the story so far…**

 **xseriouslyx**


	11. A good day and a bad day

It was a bright, sunny morning in Amity Park as the town came to life, and everyone was going about their usual business of preparing themselves for a day of school or work.

Tucker Foley felt especially upbeat this morning as he walked down the avenues. He was on his way to call for Sam so as they could walk to school together, just as they had always done. Tucker had a gut feeling that today was going to be a good day, he didn't know why. However as he cast his mind back over the past few days he knew that he had been feeling unexplainably low. Most people he knew had been, for that matter. It was very strange, he wondered if it had been the weather or something. He was just glad to be feeling better now.

As Tucker knocked on the front door of Sam's house, he hoped that she too was feeling better. He could recall the last time he saw her she didn't appear to be in the mood for talking. At all. A few seconds later the door opened and Sam walked through closing the door behind her again.

"Hi Tucker." She greeted him casually, as she walked down the steps and began their journey to school. It didn't slip Tucker's eye that Sam wasn't wearing her usual black top, and lined skirt today, but was actually sporting a new deep purple t-shirt with a dark green skirt. Her favourite boots remained, however.

"Hi Sam." Tucker replied. "You feeling any better?" He added cautiously.

Sam looked at her friend with a mild expression of confusion. "Yeah, I am." She confirmed. "I don't know what came over me. I know I'm a goth and everything but I've never been that gloomy in my whole life. It's weird, I have no idea what caused it."

"Me neither, Sam. But it wasn't just you, I think nearly everyone I know came down with a case of the blues lately. So I wouldn't blame your love of everything black for the cause of it just yet!" Tucker mused.

Sam chuckled at her friend's remark, "Funny you should say that Tucker, but I think I've actually gone off black. I don't like it half as much as I used to, it gives me this weird…eerie feeling or something."

"You don't like black anymore?" Tucker exclaimed, "Who are you and what have you done with Sam?"

"I'm serious Tucker. Black just reminds me of something…sad." Sam told him, "I can't really explain it. So anyway, think I'll go with purple more now. I like purple, and I think it brings out my eyes."

"Whatever makes you happy Sam." Commented Tucker, "Does this mean you're packing in the ultra-recyclo-vegetarian stuff too?" He added hopefully.

"No way! I'll never eat an animal, we can survive without exploiting innocent creatures." Sam insisted.

"Yeah yeah yeah." Tucker mocked, "Guess you really must be Sam, only she would defend that stuff to the death."

Sam smiled proudly, she was positive that just because she was making a few new changes to her appearance, she would always stay a unique individual.

When Sam and Tucker got to the school, they noticed one of the more fierce jocks, Dash, giving another kid a hard time, and was in the process of stuffing him in a trash can.

"That's weird." Tucker stated, "When did Dash start picking on Billy?"

"Don't know. Didn't he used to endlessly bully someone else?" Sam queried.

"Yeah. Me." Tucker mumbled irritably.

"No, I mean yeah he does pick on you a little from time to time, but wasn't there someone who was a regular for Dash's beatings?" Sam mused.

"Hmm. Yeah, I think there was." Tucker concurred.

"Who was it?" Sam asked, "And where is he now?"

"Dunno, can't remember. Maybe he moved away." Tucker concluded.

"…Maybe." Sam agreed.

 **()()()**

When Sam got home from school that afternoon she was bombarded by her girly and overbearing mother.

"Sammy-kins!" a loud high pitched voice called out.

Sam sighed as her mother's high heels clip-clopped up the hallway.

"Sammy, don't go hiding away just yet," Pamela cooed, "I've been shopping today, come into the kitchen and see!"

The girl reluctantly followed her mother, having a feeling that whatever Pamela had purchased, it would likely have a bad outcome for her.

Sam gasped in horror as her fear became a reality as she entered the kitchen and saw several pink and frilly outfits scattered over the table. Not to mention the white pomp shoes displayed neatly on a chair

"What do you think Sam?" Her mother grinned, "I saw that you've decided to make a change to your usual attire with some brighter colors, so I thought I would help out."

"Mom…" Sam spoke slowly, "This isn't exactly what I had in mind. You know I don't like pink, all this stuff is pink!"

"Nonsense!" Snapped her mother, "There are loads of different shades for you to choose from, they're just a slightly lighter version of the top you're wearing now."

"Mom, this is purple." Sam said firmly, " _Dark_ purple. I like dark colors. Just because I'm moving away from black doesn't mean I'm suddenly into pastels and frills."

"Oh Sammy, please just try them on!" Her mother practically begged, snatching hold of a dress and reaching it out to her daughter desperately.

Sam sighed irritably at her mother's frantic attempt to girly-fy her. A plight she knew too well and was sick of it.

"I'm going to lie down for a bit." She told her mother coldly, "I've not been sleeping well recently, and school tires me out."

Sam then turned her back on her mother, and made her way up to her bedroom. She closed her curtains, threw herself down on her bed and sighed with relief. What she had said to Mrs Manson had not been a lie, she truly felt exhausted and within a matter of minutes she was fast asleep.

" _Sam…Sam." A male voice called to her._

 _Sam looked around, but she was alone. She examined her strange surroundings and realised that she was in a strange room. It was very clinical and had 'science' written all over it. Sam decided she was in some kind of laboratory, and after more careful deliberation and analysis, she concluded that she was in the basement of Fentonworks._

 _But how did she know what the basement there would look like? When or why was she ever in it?_

" _Sam…" The voice called again._

" _Who is it?" Sam called back nervously, "Whose there?"_

" _It's me." The voice spoke more clearly. It sounded to be closer this time as well._

 _Sam quickly spun herself round to discover who had been calling to her. She was met by a teenage boy, who appeared to be about her age. The boy had thick black hair and piercing blue eyes, he was a small build and wore very casual sneakers, jeans, and t-shirt._

 _The boy gave Sam a friendly smile, as though he knew her well and was pleased to see her. It was such a warm smile that Sam felt her concern disappear instantly, and she gave a small smile back in return. She felt she had seen this boy before, did he go to her school? He looked so familiar that she felt she should know who he is._

" _Hi Sam." The boy said casually._

"… _Hi." Sam replied quietly._

" _We better go." The boy said. "It can be dangerous down here and we don't wanna get into trouble."_

 _He fanned one of his arms around to show he was talking about the lab. When he did so, Sam's eyes fell on a metal tunnel which appeared to be built into the wall. Sam decided that this place may be weird, but it was fascinating, she found herself drawn to the huge metal vault and began to walk towards it._

" _No!" Yelled the boy, as he jumped in front of Sam to block her path. "Stay away from there, it's dangerous. We should go."_

 _Sam stared at the boy, she was certain she knew him…why did he want her out of the lab?_

" _Who are you?" Sam finally asked the boy._

" _What?" He asked in confusion, "Sam, it's me. Danny."_

" _Danny?" She whispered._

 _She knew that name. She knew someone called Danny. Who did she know named Danny?_

" _Come on," Danny persisted, tugging her arm, "we need to stay away from the portal."_

" _Portal?" Sam repeated._

 _Why did that word make her think of danger? Why had it just sent a cold shiver through her body?_

" _Danny…what's in the portal?" Sam asked, "Why is it dangerous?"_

" _I'm telling you it's not a good idea to go in there, Sam." Danny said firmly. "I went in there once."_

" _What was inside?" Sam asked, her eyes growing wide with curiosity._

" _Nothing. 'It's just like a metal tunnel.'" Danny said simply._

 _Sam blinked. She knew it was only 'like a metal tunnel.' Someone had told her that already. Who had told her that? Where had she heard that before?_

" _Then why can't I go inside?" She asked quietly. She felt her heart begin to bang with suspense. Something wasn't right._

" _Don't you remember, Sam?" Danny asked, his eyes looked sad. "I died in there."_

" _What?" Sam whispered._

 _Had Danny really died in the basement of Fentonworks?_

" _How?" She asked._

" _The white light…white light…light."_

A white light dominated Sam's vision and she gasped in fear as she shot up on her bed. She stared as she realised her mother had come into her room, and had just opened her curtains.

"Sammy, it's much too early to close the curtains. Really, people will think we are mourning if we have curtains closed at this time of day." Pamela scolded. "You really shouldn't be napping either, you won't be able to sleep during the night. Now come on, wash her hands, dinner is almost ready."

Sam grunted at her mother as she left the room. She sat on her bed for a few seconds to ponder her thoughts. What a strange dream…why on earth had she dreamt about a boy named Danny in the basement of Fentonworks? Sam could recall that she had been down there before, with Tucker. But she couldn't remember why.

Why did that boy look familiar?

Sam stood up and walked out of her room. She felt goose bumps spread all over her body, that dream had been too lucid for her liking. She decided she would ask Tucker when she next saw him if he knew anyone named Danny, and see if she could piece together why he was lurking in her subconscious…

 **()()()**

Out in Wisconsin, Vlad Masters was having a somewhat difficult time with his charge. The hybrid and younger ghost were sat at the dining room table. Vlad had just finished his lunch of roasted squash and couscous salad, whereas Danny had barely taken two bites of his choice of grilled cheese sandwich.

Vlad sighed in dismay, he was so sure he was on the right track of making progress with the boy the day he's taught him to fly. He'd seen a brighter side to Danny that day, one of great hope and potential. But it looked like that had been snatched away, and Vlad was back to square one with the teenager.

Danny didn't notice Vlad's analytical stares, and he wasn't interested in his food. Danny was very much lost in a world of his own at this moment in time. He would admit that he had been feeling confused and naturally low since he first became a ghost, but since he made that wish the evening before he felt that he no longer had any purpose. He felt like he meant nothing to no one, and it had to be one of the worst feelings in the world.

Danny stole a quick glance at Vlad and realised that the man had indeed been staring at him. The boy decided to take no notice and turned his head away, to continue sitting silently with his thoughts.

Danny was struggling with the fact that Vlad Masters was now the only person in the world he had any connection to. He had seen both a nasty and a nice side to Vlad and it only created more uncertainty for Danny, as he couldn't justify neither hating nor liking the man. He was also still very uncomfortable with the fact that the half ghost had just taken him in, and insisted he stay. Danny felt as though he were just some stray animal whom Vlad had taken a liking to, and wanted to keep as a pet to train.

"Daniel?" Vlad spoke suddenly, making the younger ghost jerk slightly. Danny didn't answer.

"Aren't you going to eat?" Vlad continued, not waiting any longer for a verbal response.

"Not hungry." Danny mumbled, truthfully.

Vlad rolled his eyes. He was growing very tired of the boy's negative attitude. Danny watched warily as the man stood up from the table. Vlad looked at the boy expectantly.

"Well come along, will you." The man snapped impatiently at the boy, "If you're not going to eat then I'm not going to wait, let's go."

"Go where?" Danny asked drearily.

"To my lab. We'll see if some training will waken you up a bit." Vlad stated.

Danny sighed. Ghost training was the last thing on his mind right now. If anything it was the thought of it that made him feel worse. "I'm not really in the mood right now."

Vlad scowled at the boy. "Oh I see, you're not in the mood. I take you in and offer to help you, and you throw my generosity back in my face?" Vlad spat angrily, "I don't care whether you're in the mood or not, Daniel. You are in my house and you'll do as I say!"

Danny glared at Vlad for his harsh words and tone of voice and bravely he said, "You don't own me."

Vlad chuckled bitterly, not sure whether to find Danny's daring response funny or enraging.

"You certainly have a lot of nerve Daniel, I'll give you that." Vlad said smugly. "But you would be wise to remember that you depend on me in so many ways. I strongly suggest that you don not push your luck with me."

"Just leave me alone Vlad!" Daniel shouted, his emotion now obvious, "I don't wanna do any more ghost training. I don't wanna be ghost! I wish when I had died I could've just stayed that way and not bothered with an afterlife!"

Vlad stared at Danny for a second or two; that had been quite an outburst. He hadn't realised the boy had felt so strongly about being a ghost, and judging by his drooping shoulders and gloomy eyes one thing right now became obvious: the boy was miserable.

"Look, I appreciate that this has been a big adjustment for you," Vlad said more calmly. "But your actions and attitude aren't helping whatsoever. Will you please be reasonable and accept the fact that I am trying to help you."

Danny sighed in defeat. He didn't want the half ghost's help, he didn't want to have to need it, but he knew he did. And that got on his nerves.

"Come on, I won't ask you again." Vlad said sternly.

Danny reluctantly pushed his chair back, and slumped after the half ghost.

 **()()()**

After about half an hour of trying to engage Danny with battle techniques, the hybrid was clutching his final straw. He was certain he could have enticed a teenage boy with combat skills, but Danny was clearly uninterested and unmotivated.

"Will you just try?" Plasmius yelled at the boy in frustration.

"I am trying." Danny retorted irritably.

Plasmius knew he was lying. The boy was barely even forming ecto-blasts, and Plasmius knew that Danny was perfectly capable of forming them, and had quite good aim to match. Needless to say, the hybrid lost his temper. Before Plasmius could stop himself, he quickly formed an ecto-blast of his own and flung it at the boy. The blast hit Danny in the stomach and sent him hurdling backwards on to the floor, he groaned from its impact.

Plasmius walked over to where the boy lay, and unsympathetically looked down at him.

"Now, if you were paying attention and actually trying, you could have easily dodged that." Plasmius told him.

Danny glared up at his 'mentor.' He knew he that he was getting on Plasmius' last nerve, but he had expected the half to yell at him and storm off, not physically attack him. When Danny first arrived Plasmius hadn't shown half as much interest in him as he did now. What had changed?

"Why did you do that you jerk?" Danny growled.

Plasmius bent down and yanked Danny back on to his feet.

"Understand this Daniel, I am not a quitter, and I am not easily defeated. I brought you down here for a purpose and I will ensure that purpose is fulfilled. Now we can do this the easy way or the hard way but let me assure you that either way, we are doing this!" Plasmius snarled in the boy's face.

Danny scowled at him, he had had enough of being bossed around for one day. Whilst Plasmius still had the material of Danny's suit clutched in his hand, Danny willed his ecto plasmic energy to surge into his fist. Danny then did not hesitate to connect this fist compellingly with Plasmius' chin, forcing the half ghost to let go of Danny and stumble several feet backwards. Danny watched as Plasmius supported himself against the wall as a result from the sneak attack, and rubbed his chin where Danny had punched him.

The half ghost frowned at Danny, having not expected the boy to retaliate. Danny stood still and stared blankly at Plasmius, not quite believing he had done it either. Danny began to worry about what Plasmius would do in return, as punishment. The teenager decided that he didn't want to wait around to find out. He quickly willed himself to turn intangible and shot up through the ceiling to try and hide himself from the potential wrath of the half ghost.

Plasmius scowled even more when he saw the child had 'ran' off.

"Fudge buckets!" He cursed to himself in annoyance, "Just when I was finally getting somewhere with him!"

It was true Plasmius wasn't all that annoyed that Danny had attacked him back, but was actually pleased that he had defended himself, and had used his ghost powers to do so. Plasmius wondered if it would be worthwhile going after him, it was obvious to Vlad that Danny had scarpered off because he was scared of the half ghost's response to having received a blow to the jaw.

Meanwhile, upstairs in his room, Danny was panicking because he was unable to keep himself intangible.

"Come on, come on!" Danny willed to himself, desperately trying to call forth his ghostly ability.

Several seconds passed, but no matter how hard Danny tried not even a limb would turn intangible for him.

"Seriously?" He cried in annoyance, "I can turn intangible in my sleep, but when I actually want to it won't work?"

Little did Danny know, Plasmius was actually watching the display, hovering over him, intangible himself. Deciding that it would be best to leave Danny alone to work out how to distribute his energy correctly, Plasmius decided to take the time to address an equally important matter.

The half ghost returned to his lab, and began to active his computer and spy cameras. He needed to know once and for all if the Fenton's would truly give up the ghost hunting.

The screen came to life and Plasmius immediately spotted Jack and Maddie sat at their kitchen table. The couple appeared to be discussing very boring basic things, such as what was needed from the store, and what would be best for supper that evening.

"Come on, get to it!" Vlad mumbled irritably.

Almost as though he heard him, Jack finally introduced the half-ghost's desired topic, after he had established what he was receiving for his dinner that night.

"So Maddie…What are your thoughts about this whole 'quitting ghost hunting' business now?"

"Yes…" Vlad whispered eagerly.

"I don't know." Maddie sighed, "We seemed so certain about it, but for the life of me I can't remember why now. I hoped we haven't rushed into anything."

"Well, it's not like we can't turn back," Jack said suggestively, "After all our equipment is still in the lab, and we were getting so close to finishing off the Fenton Portal…"

"No!" Vlad hissed, clenching his fist.

"No!" Cried Jazz as she suddenly appeared on the screen, clutching her books to her chest.

"Mom dad, you said you were finished with the ghost hunting. You promised me!" Jazz accused.

"Jazz, honey why aren't you in school?" Maddie asked.

"Mom, look at the time, school's finished for today." Jazz said bleakly, "You see, you guys can't go back to ghost hunting, every time you become engrossed or even think about anything ghostly you lose sight of everything else around you…including me."

"Now Jazz that's just not true." Maddie retorted.

"Your mother's right Jazzy-pants, we can focus on other things as well as ghosts." Jack persisted.

"No you can't." Jazz argued, "What happened to finding a job down at Axion Labs? You can find out if they want help within their anti-ghost technology department. That way you can still indulge in your bizarre ghost obsessions, and keep it out of the house in a nine to five occupation."

"I don't know…" Jack debated, unconvinced.

"It does restrict our ability to freely and openly protect the city Jazz. We won't have that luxury at Axion Labs, we would have to follow their procedures." Maddie explained.

"That's the point! You guys don't need to openly search and hunt ghosts, that's what The Guy's in White are for!" Jazz claimed, "If you work for Axion Labs you would be helping to protect the city on a larger scale, building anti-ghosts shields and stuff."

"I suppose…" Maddie sighed.

"You promised me, mom." Jazz insisted.

"It's just such a big step Jazz. Your mother and I want to make sure we're doing what's best for the city." Jack clarified.

"Don't lie dad." Jazz snapped, "That portal thing in the basement isn't going to protect the city, and you know it. If anything it's going to put it in more danger. You know what, do what you want, it's not like what I think ever really matters around here anyway!"

"Jazz!" Her parent's called after her as she stormed out of the room. They didn't speak until they heard her bedroom door slam shut.

"Is she right Maddie?" Jack asked his wife, "Are we just being selfish if we continue with our self-employed ghost hunting?"

"Maybe. I mean she's right in the fact that we can still do our bit to protect the city whilst working for certain departments in Axion Labs. And we did promise her…" Maddie debated.

"Well we'll have to see if Axion Labs are even hiring first of all." Jack mumbled.

"Don't be silly Jack, Axion Labs have been begging for our help for years. We shouldn't have any difficulty securing jobs there." Maddie claimed.

"Oh yeah. Guess we should maybe look into that tomorrow then, eh?" Jack said, "What should we do about Jazz? She seemed pretty upset."

"Oh Jazz just needs to feel a little more appreciated is all." Maddie insisted, "I'll pick some lovely photographs of her out of the photo album and put them in the empty photo frames in the living room. That'll show her we're still thinking about her."

"Good idea Mads. Hey, why do we have so many empty photo frames lying around here anyway? What used to be in them?" Jack asked.

"I don't know…I don't remember."

Growing bored of the conversation, Vlad turned the cameras off. He sighed thoughtfully, as his eyes scanned around his lab. It was obvious Desiree's magic had worked well. Clearly Jack and Maddie had no memory that they'd ever had a son, and all evidence of his existence had been wiped, just as she said it would be.

From what Vlad had just heard, he didn't get the result he had hoped for. Yes Jack and Maddie's ghost hunting would decrease significantly, but they were intending on preventing their attacks on Amity Park where possible. He could strangle Desiree for this, if she had kept her distance from Danny none of this would have been an issue!

Vlad had been extremely grateful for the input of Jazz Fenton, if the girl hadn't guilt tripped her parent's, the couple would have easily reverted back to their extreme ghost hunting, and would have more than likely finished their portal.

Vlad decided that it would be for the best to leave the situation alone for now. If he was lucky, the Fenton's new occupations would keep them barred away in a lab inventing anti-ghost shields as Jazz had suggested, and kept well away from front line ghost hunting.

All he could do now was pray that word of the Fenton's un-retirement from ghost hunting didn't reach Skulker or Ember, and it was possible that Danny might stay safe.


	12. Not what I wanted to hear

Ember could hardly contain herself. She had been strumming loudly on her guitar for what seemed like hours, composing catchy tunes with neat lyrics. She couldn't deny her excitement for her next visit to Amity Park since she had found out the Fenton's would no longer be a threat. All she had to do was bide her time and wait until a dimension tear would present itself and allow her access, since Skulker was adamant that he would not open Plasmius' portal for her.

The hunting ghost himself was growing tired and irritable of the diva's uplifted spirits. When she wasn't singing or slamming on her guitar, she prattled endlessly to him about all her ideas and opportunities which were now at her finger tips thanks to the Fenton's retirement. Needless to say, Skulker was at his wits end with it. He himself could not get in the celebratory mood of the Fenton's early retirement as he was more concerned with the damage Desiree would attempt to do with the information he had accidently given her. Not too much time had passed since then, however the next tear in the dimension she found Plasmius was going to have to put up with her, and Danny was also in potential danger because of what he'd said to her…Not that Skulker cared about him at all.

Skulker sat in lair, as far away from Ember's music as possible, and tried to contemplate his options, above the noise. He had considered tracking down Desiree and silencing her himself. Although he knew this would be tricky, and could possibly worsen the situation. He knew he could continue to wait it out, but that would have also have a very bad outcome in terms with Plasmius once he got the hold of him after Desiree's upcoming encounter.

Skulker groaned in irritation with himself…and with Ember. Only she could make an impossible situation seem ten times worse than reality.

"Ember!" Skulker bellowed above the music as he stormed into the room she was in, "Will you stop that racket I'm trying to think!"

Ember paused for a second when her clearly angry boyfriend appeared, and she raised an eyebrow at his attitude.

"Jeez watch you don't hurt yourself with such a dangerous pastime." She teased in response.

"Shut. Up." Skulker warned, "You've been at this for hours, give it a rest I'm in crisis here."

"Pleeease!" Ember jeered as she jumped off the table she'd been using as her stage, "What kind of crisis can't be cured with some rock and roll? Besides aren't you pumped? Our next trip to the human world could be ghost hunter free!"

Skulker sighed in dismay. He knew Ember was right to be ecstatic over the fact that the Fenton's had retired, he would be too if he hadn't managed to put his foot in it with Desiree. He hadn't told Ember about his mistake, although his stupidity would probably lift her spirits even further.

Ember picked up on Skulker's lack of enthusiasm about this fantastic opportunity, and it wasn't something she wanted to let slide. She wanted Skulker to be equally as elated as she was.

"Right," the diva probed, "what's going on? We are going to be the first ghosts to invade a Fenton-free Amity Park and you're acting like you couldn't care less. What's happened?"

Skulker frowned at Ember in confusion, "What makes you so sure we'll be the first? Other ghosts will be racing around like crazy to get to the human world now."

"No more than usual." Ember smiled, "After all, no other ghost knows the big news yet."

Skulker's jaw dropped open in shock. "You mean…you haven't told anyone yet?"

"Nope." Ember grinned, "Wanted to keep it all to ourselves so that you and I get to enjoy it first and make the most of it. See, not such a big mouth now am I?"

Skulker smiled at Ember. He couldn't believe she had kept news like this to herself, normally she would have it spread around the Ghost Zone like wild fire. It was obvious this meant a lot to her, and he suddenly felt wrong for not getting into the spirit with her. But that was something he could change.

"Tell you what," Skulker said to Ember, "I need to go and see Plasmius about something real quick. But when I get back, you and I are going to take our trip to the human world."

Ember couldn't contain her grin, knowing that Skulker was coming back to join her on invading the human town was enough to supress her irritation for the fact that he was yet again, going to see Plasmius. To keep her from starting an argument about this, and to express her thrilled energy, Ember leapt up on the table and started to thrash her guitar again.

Skulker decided that this was it que to leave, before he did end up saying something he couldn't take back. He had also made the decision that he would speak to Plasmius and tell him himself what had happened, he figured it would be better to get it over and done with.

 **()()()**

"Come on Tucker, hurry up!" Sam urged her friend as she quickly paced up the sidewalk.

Tucker breathlessly followed, not understanding her hurry whatsoever.

"Sam, it's been a really long day at school, and I've already been through the hell that is gym class!" He panted, "Will you please slow down?"

"But this is important!" Sam snapped, not slowing her pace.

"I don't get it, why?" Tucker asked, "We're only going to FentonWorks and it's not gonna go anywhere anytime soon so will you give it a rest!"

"The quicker we get there, the quicker I get answers." Sam retorted.

"Answers to what exactly? If they know about some kid named Danny who died in their house? You realise how crazy that sounds?" Tucker queried.

"I'm not going to ask that, obviously. I want to see inside their lab, and see if it's the same as my dream." Sam stated.

"But why?" Tucker pressed, "What does it matter Sam, it was only a dream. And this Danny dude didn't really exist, think about it, if a kid died in the Fenton's lab the news would be all over it."

Sam sighed as she approached the Fenton home and walked up the steps. She knew it didn't make much sense either, and she could understand if her friend did think she was a little crazy for taking a dream so seriously. But she felt this was something she had to do, and she rang the doorbell.

Tucker scowled at Sam's impulsiveness. "What makes you think they'll even let us see their lab Sam?"

Sam merely smirked at her friend, "Tucker, everyone knows how eccentric the Fenton's are about ghost hunting. Especially Mr. Fenton. I can't see us having any trouble in persuading them to let us have a peak. And if they ask, we'll say it's a school thing. A careers project or something."

"You think they'll believe we want to grow up to be ghost hunters?" Tucker asked scornfully.

"Well, you're a techno-geek and I'm an ultra-recyclo-vegetarian goth. It's not hard to believe that we would be interested in the paranormal now is it?" Sam replied with a smile.

Both teenagers turned their heads as the door opened, and Maddie greeted them.

"Hi kids, can I help you?" Maddie asked with a smile.

"Hi Mrs Fenton," Sam greeted politely, "I don't know if you remember us, I'm Sam, this is Tucker."

Maddie paused for a second, as she briefly studied the two teenagers.

"Hmm. I think I do remember the two of you from being in the park with Jazz when she was small…" Maddie pondered aloud, "My goodness, haven't you both grown!"

"Yeah. So, uh, we're here for something for school." Sam stumbled, "You see, Tucker and I are really interested in ghost hunting and we were wondering if it would be okay to have a quick look inside your lab?"

Both teenagers flashed Maddie a sickly-sweet innocent smile to try and seal the deal.

Maddie bit her lip in hesitation. She knew it wouldn't be wise to bring two unaccompanied children into the lab, particularly with the amount of equipment currently down there. Not to mention how touchy Jazz was being on the subject and she was due home any minute now.

"Um, well kids…the thing is-"

"Who's at the door Maddie?" Boomed Jack, interrupting is wife. He pulled the door wide open in an inviting manner.

"Hi kids, what can we do for ya?" Jack smiled at them, hoping they were selling candy bars.

"Hi Mr. Fenton, we were just asking Mrs Fenton if we could look at your lab." Explained Tucker, "It's for school." He added.

"For school, eh?" Jack smiled, "Well come on in! I've never been one to stand in the way of a good education."

"Jack-" Maddie tried to interject as Sam and Tucker quickly walked past her, following Jack to the kitchen.

"Hang on a second Maddie, just gonna show these kids the lab and I'll be right with ya." Jack called as he pulled open the door to the basement.

Maddie sighed in defeat and closed the door. She decided at this point the best she could do would be to ensure the visit was quick, and followed them.

As they followed Jack down into the basement which was their lab, Sam's eyes widened as she soaked in every detail. She was having a very creepy case of De-Ja-Vu, every detail, every single detail of the lab she was standing in, was identical to the lab in her dream. She was right, it did belong to FentonWorks.

' _But what does that mean about Danny'_ She thought as her eyes locked on the concealed portal doors at the far-end wall.

"Wow." Tucker breathed out. "How cool is this place."

"Pretty darn cool." Grinned Jack. But his grin quickly faded as he glanced at Maddie, who seemed dejected, "We're gonna miss it, aren't we Mads?"

"Miss it?" Tucker repeated, "What do you mean?"

"Jack and I are giving up our independent ghost hunting." Maddie explained, "We're donating all of our equipment to Axion Labs, and we are going to help with their anti-ghost programme down there."

"Really?" asked Sam in surprise, "Why?"

"We figure we could help a lot more by working in a team with other ghost hunting professionals," Maddie continued, "And besides, it's maybe not the best idea to have so much dangerous equipment in one's basement." She joked half-heartedly.

Sam ears pricked up with Maddie's last sentence, "Why Mrs Fenton? Has there been a serious accident in the past down here?" She asked.

"Sam!" Tucker growled at her under his breath.

"Er, nothing too serious…"Jack replied thoughtfully, "I'd say the worst thing was the time I blew my thumb off. What do you think Maddie?"

"I think that was serious enough." Maddie smiled at her husband.

Tucker turned to Sam and raised his eyebrows at her, as if to say 'I told you so.' Sam scowled at him.

"So if you're taking everything to Axion Labs, is that thing going too?" Sam asked pointing at the portal.

Jack sighed in dismay, "No, the only place that thing is going is the junkyard, kids. It's an unfinished project and we've discontinued our work on it."

"What was it going to be?" Sam asked, walking closer to it.

"A portal which interconnected our world to a ghost world." Maddie answered.

"Wow." Tucker said with a false smile, "Isn't that cool Sam?"

Sam nodded, still staring at the cold metal portal. Her heart was pounding fast against her chest, this was all too surreal. Everything fitted with her dream, she just needed to place where the mysterious Danny fitted in to it all.

"Mom, dad?" Called a female voice, "Are you guys down there?"

"We'll be up in a second Jazz." Maddie quickly called to her daughter.

"Okay, I'll be in my room working on a paper." Jazz replied.

"Well kids it was nice of you to stop by and have a look around, but I think we'll have to call it a day." Maddie strongly implied, not really wanted her daughter to find out that she and Jack had been giving tours of a ghost lab to minors.

"Okay. Thanks for everything Mr and Mrs Fenton. Tucker said, "Come on Sam."

"Mr and Mrs Fenton, how long ago did you start working on the portal?" Sam quickly asked.

Jack rubbed his chin, "Oh…about three, four months ago I think." The man replied.

"And did anyone ever go inside it?" Sam probed, "Like anyone our age who maybe went to a different school or visited from somewhere else?"

Jack and Maddie shot each other confused glances.

"No, you two are the only kids who've actually ever shown an interest in our ghost hunting." Maddie explained, "Come on, I'll walk you to the door."

"So you don't know a boy called Danny?" Sam pressed, "A Danny who may have come down here and went into the portal?"

"Sam, shut up!" Hissed Tucker, "She's just asking cause there's been some kid we know making stuff up!" He laughed nervously to the Fenton's, "He's crazy, claims he knows you both and can work all of your gadgets. Boy, is his face gonna be red when we see him next! No need to show us out, we'll find the door-Sam let's go!"

Tucker grabbed Sam's wrist and yanked hard, quickly marching up them both up the steps out of the lab and exiting the house.

The Fenton's stared after the two kids who had practically darted out of the lab.

"Huh, that was weird." Maddie commented to her husband.

"I know," He replied seriously. "Who'd have thought we were so popular with the kids today!"

 **()()()**

Skulker slowed and patiently inspected the surrounding area before he attempted to activate Plasmius' portal to allow himself through. He knew there was a chance that Desiree may be lurking and waiting for her opportunity for the portal to open and allow her to follow him in. Once Skulker was certain he was alone, he quickly activated the portal and travelled through.

At the other side in Vlad's lab, the half ghost was standing alone and turned when he noticed his portal activate. He raised his eyebrows in surprise when Skulker came through, but rather than greeting him first, he quickly deactivated the portal again.

"Something wrong, Skulker?" Plasmius asked, bemused by the hunter's strange actions.

"Yes." Skulker answered seriously turning to face the half ghost, "Well, maybe. It depends on how you view the matter."

Plasmius eyed his ally suspiciously, "Try me." He challenged half-jokingly.

"Well, when I was exploring the Ancient Realms the evening before last, I came across that wretched genie." Skulker stated.

"Desiree? What was she doing there?" Plasmius rightly queried, after all it's not like there was any ghost out in those parts to grant a wish for.

"No idea. Anyway she seemed pretty upset about some wish she granted the whelp-"

"Ah yes. Don't get me started on that blasted wish. The boy's been a nuisance ever since!" Plasmius interrupted out of frustration. However his stomach also jumped, as he realised he would have to tell Skulker about the updated situation regarding where the Fenton's stood in terms of ghost hunting as a result of the very same wish.

"I can imagine." Skulker replied unsympathetically, "Anyways, she drabbled on about how she thought it was a good wish and she didn't get why the pup responded badly and…"

"Yes?" Plasmius prompted.

Skulker sighed loudly and tensed his body in preparation, "Plasmius, I may have let it slip to her that the whelp can remember his human life."

"YOU WHAT?" Plasmius exploded. The half ghost's red eyes begin to glow with anger, and ecto-energy twirled around his fists. Skulker jerked involuntarily at the half-ghost's more than heated reaction.

"How could you be so stupid?" Plasmius yelled.

"I didn't do it on purpose!" Skulker retorted defensively, "And it's not like she'll do anything sinister, I just thought you should hear it from me and not her."

Plasmius laughed sarcastically, "Oh of course not! Nothing bad can come from you 'may or may not' telling her about Daniel being able to remember his life, no. Well then, I suppose nothing bad can come as a result of her stupid wish granting ability, such as now the Fenton's 'may or may not' be reverting to ghost hunting!"

"What?" Skulker cried in horror, "What did you say about the Fenton's?"

"Pfft! It's not anything sinister, right? I just thought you should hear it from me and not them!" Plasmius taunted spitefully.

Skulker clenched his jaw and fisted his metal hands. This was a disaster! After everything he and Ember had been put through because of the ghost boy, and now the only good thing to come from him had been ripped away-again!

"I'm going to waste that ghost mage!" Skulker growled maliciously.

Plasmius raised his eyebrows, having never before seen Skulker this angry. And he and Skulker had been through some pretty testing situations together. In all honesty, Plasmius couldn't blame Skulker for having this response, in fact he was extremely relieved that this anger wasn't targeted at himself…or Danny. But was he actually serious when he said he wanted to waste Desiree?

"Vlad?" called a voice from the door of the lab, "Everything okay down here?"

Danny had heard Plasmius' explosive yell towards Skulker, having been in the room directly above the lab at the time. The teen's curiosity got the better of him as he hadn't heard the half-ghost yell as angrily as that before now. He figured it would be in his best interests to learn of what had managed to tick him off so badly. So as he could avoid it in future, if possible.

Plasmius turned to see his charge entering the lab. He quickly turned back to Skulker and gave him a threatening glance, warning him not to dare try anything malevolent towards the boy in the heart of his anger. Skulker saw this warning, and knew he would have to restrain himself. And besides, it wasn't Danny he wanted now, it was Desiree.

"Everything is fine, Daniel." Plasmius told Danny calmly, "Go back upstairs my boy."

"Your boy?" Skulker repeated in disgust, "It's getting very homely here now, isn't it Plasmius."

Danny dared a quick glance at Skulker. He wouldn't admit it but he was still pretty frightened of these other ghosts. However, he couldn't bring himself to leave the lab, he still wanted to know what was going on.

"Daniel, upstairs. Now." Plasmius ordered Danny, choosing to ignore Skulker's mocking comment.

"Why?" Danny asked quietly, "What's going on?"

"You've ruined everything." Skulker hissed at the boy, "That idiotic wish of yours could have just cost us everything!"

"Enough Skulker, leave the boy be. He didn't know any better, and he's suffered as a result of Desiree's meddling too you know." Plasmius retorted.

"I don't care!" Skulker snapped, "I'll see to that insufferable ghost, but he'll have to pay a price as well."

"Wait, what did I do to do?" Danny demanded, half scared half irritated.

"Quiet Daniel!" Plasmius shouted at the boy, glaring at the boy, "Skulker I've warned you, leave the boy be. Enough is enough."

"You're right Plasmius…" Skulker replied steadily.

The hunting ghost then swiftly took out his blade and swung it at Plasmius. The half ghost barely had the chance to move at all and the blade made contact with his flesh, and vertically cut along his stomach. Plasmius cried out in shock and pain as he fell backwards on to the floor. As his body hit the ground, the impact of the attack caused him to revert to his human form, and he lost consciousness.

"Enough is enough…" Skulker mumbled darkly.

Danny gasped as a puddle of green and red liquid began to spread on to the cold tile floor. He dropped to his knees beside the billionaire, not knowing what to do.

Danny turned his head and glared at the attacker, "What are you doing?"

Skulker's eye's narrowed at the boy, "What I should have done the minute I first clapped eyes on you…"

 **()()()**

"Sam, what were you thinking asking those questions?" Tucker plagued his friend as they walked to their respective homes. "They probably think we're crazy after that!"

"I don't care!" Sam huffed, "I still didn't get my answer, I still don't know who Danny is."

Tucker sighed in exasperation, "You wanna know who Danny is? He's who I told you he was earlier, he's a figment of your subconscious Sam. He probably looks like some guy from T.V or a band and he showed up in your dream, and for some reason he's called Danny. End of story."

"But Tucker I was right about everything else." Sam argued, "The Fenton's lab was exactly the same in my dream, explain that!"

"You saw the lab when you were little and you've been watching too many sci-fi movies recently." Tucker stated, "Problem solved."

 **()()()**

 **Hope you like everyone, and brace yourselves because the next chapter is the last! See you at the end.**

 **xseriouslyx**


	13. One can Wish

Danny gasped as Skulker swung his fist at him and sent the boy hurdling across the room. Danny groaned in pain but tried to get himself off his knees, even though he didn't know a lot about self-defence in ghost battle, or human battle for that matter. However he knew he would have to at least try, to give himself some sort of chance at survival. Danny sorely regretted not taking Vlad's attempts to train him more seriously at this point.

Skulker scowled at the boy as he tried to get up. However rather than continue to thrash him, Skulker threw a small purple cube across the floor towards the boy, which quickly expanded and locked him inside. Danny pressed his hands against the enclosing 'wall.' As Skulker began to approach he panicked and tried to blast his way out of the cube, but his ghost powers wouldn't summon at all. Skulker chuckled evilly as he watched Danny's failing attempts.

"Forget it, whelp." He snarled to the boy as he stood over the cube, "This device will keep your powers short-circuited as long as you're inside. In case you're wondering why I've trapped you in there, it's just so as I can have time to go and fetch Ember."

Skulker leaned down and stared Danny directly in the eye, "We may not get the chance to enjoy raiding a ghost hunter free town, but at least we will get the satisfaction of finally wasting you!" He snarled.

Danny glared back at the malevolent ghost, but he didn't say anything. He figured wisely that anything he would say would only worsen the situation.

Skulker stood back up, and as he strode across the room towards the portal he shot Vlad a menacing glance. The man hadn't moved or made a sound since the attack. Skulker wasn't sure if the blow had been fatal, nor did he care at this point. He just needed Plasmius down long enough so as he could get Ember, and they could waste Danny Phantom together. Skulker figured he owed her that much as he had prevented her from doing so in the first place.

As the portal glowed to life, Skulker turned and shot Danny an evil smile, "See you soon, whelp. Enjoy your last few moments of living pain-free. Actually…just enjoy your last few moments of living!"

Danny narrowed his eyes as Skulker's laugh echoed through the room as he jumped into the portal. He sighed shakily as the room fell silent, he knew he was in big trouble. His eyes fell on Vlad who lay a few metres away from him. He had to wake the man up, he needed to know he was okay.

"Vlad?" Danny called out desperately, "Vlad please wake up!"

Vlad didn't stir, and Danny couldn't see him breathing. Growing more fearful, Danny banged the cube as loud as he could to try and evoke some sort of response from the man.

"Vlad please you gotta wake up, we need to get of here!" Danny wailed louder.

Vlad lay still and his eyes remained shut, Danny could see no indication of life whatsoever.

Danny sniffed loudly and he quickly wiped his watery eyes. He moved away from the edge of the cube and wrapped his arms around his knees, his eyes not leaving Vlad.

"I'm sorry." He whispered in defeat.

 **()()()**

Desiree recklessly stormed through the Ghost Zone. She was desperate to find a dimension tear, she was growing more and more angry and impatient about finding Vlad and demanding answers from him. How dare he scorn her? How dare he favour some ghost brat over her? She knew she would demand answers but above all, she would demand respect. She was sick and tired of being treated like dirt by every male she encountered, she wanted change and she was going to start with the half ghost she had been idolising for years.

Desiree made her way to where Vlad's portal entrance was. She knew it was a long shot that the portal would be accessible, but she was running out of options. She knew realistically that she could be waiting for days if it came down to locating a dimension tear on the off-chance.

Desiree gasped when she saw a sickly green glow in the remote location. She couldn't believe her luck; Vlad's portal was active. She could travel through!

Desiree chuckled with malice, "So it shall be…" She muttered joyfully to herself. Without further hesitation, Desiree flew towards the portal and made her way through into Vlad's lab.

Little did the genie ghost realise that she had just played into Skulker's plan. He had deliberately left the portal open in hope that Desiree would discover it active and go through. This way, he could take down both Danny and Desiree at once, and not allow either of them to stand in his way again.

Danny's eyes widened with fear as the portal glowed brighter, he couldn't believe Skulker had returned with Ember already. He gasped when Desiree, who was grinning in triumph, appeared out of the portal instead. However her grin vanished in surprise when she saw Danny trapped in Skulker's cube, and she screamed when she saw Vlad.

"No!" She shrieked as she threw herself down beside the man, "Vlad! Vlad can you hear me?" She called desperately to him.

Vlad didn't respond, not even when she gently shook him.

"No…" Desiree whispered tearfully. Danny watched, equally as upset as the genie ghost, as she pressed her hand on the half ghosts chest. Danny didn't care for this ghost at all, but he couldn't let his fate be hers as well. He had to warn her.

"You need to leave." Danny choked out, "You need to go before they come back, you're in danger."

Desiree barely heard Danny, she was focusing on the small rhythmic beat she could feel in her hand through Vlad's chest.

Danny urgently banged the cube to get her attention, "Hey, do you hear me?" He shouted, "You need to go!"

Desiree turned her head and looked at Danny. She glared angrily at him, her eyes glowing. "What happened here?" She demanded, "Who did this?"

"It was Skulker." Danny replied, "He's angry at all of us because of the wish I made, the one you granted. It changed something important to him and now he wants to waste us. So get out now while you still have a chance!"

Desiree continued to hold on to Vlad, and she looked longingly at him. "Why did he attack Vlad?" She asked sadly, "That wish had nothing to do with him."

Danny hung his head, "Because…he was defending me." Danny admitted, "Skulker got him out of the way so that he could get to me."

Desiree glared angrily at the young ghost. "This is all your fault!" She accused, "All of this has happened because of you! Everything was going fine until you came along you horrid little wretch!"

Danny jerked as though the harsh words had physically been thrown and hit him. Though he glared back at Desiree, "All my fault?" He yelled back, "How is this my fault? I didn't know you would mess up that stupid wish, and I didn't ask Vlad to take me in and make the other ghosts angry. In fact, I didn't want to be a ghost at all, I wanted none of this!" Danny's emotion finally broke out as tears began to escape from his eyes

"Do not blame my wish granting abilities!" Desiree shrieked at him defensively.

Vlad let out a soft sigh, making her turn attention back to him. She knew he was still alive, but only just. Was it possible she could save him? Then her eyes widened in realisation, and she looked back to Danny.

"Quick!" She shouted to him, "Make a wish, wish him better!" She urged desperately.

Danny looked at her dejectedly, and shook his head. "I'm not making any more stupid wishes." He sniffed as he wiped his eyes, "I don't want anything else bad to happen. It your magic, you use it."

"No!" Desiree snapped, "I can't do it myself my magic needs to be wished for, just do it!"

"No!" Danny yelled, "I wish for you to be able to grant a wish for yourself! That way the consequences can lay on your head!"

Desiree gasped as her magic welled up inside of her. She had never felt it so strong, so intense. No one had ever enabled her to use her own magic freely before. Now was her chance, to do whatever she wanted. The power was limitless! But as she looked down at Vlad's face, she knew there was only one thing she could wish for…That would make anything worthwhile. Tears began to roll down her face with anticipation.

"I wish…" She choked out, "I wish for you, Vlad Masters, to live a long…and happy life."

As she whispered out these words a massive shock of energy shot around her body, causing her to let go of Vlad and gasp from the intensity. The room became clouded with a glow that enabled the magic to come into effect. As it began to die down, Desiree felt weak and collapsed on to the floor, urging her eyes to stay open.

Vlad groaned as he sat up, trying to recall what had happened. He clutched his stomach where he could remember Skulker's blade slicing him, but he was shocked when he felt no pain, and even more shocked when he felt no wound whatsoever!

He frantically looked around and saw Desiree laying just behind him, seemingly in a critical state herself.

"Desiree?" Vlad called in disbelief.

"Vlad…" Desiree called back in relief. She smiled. Her wish had worked!

"Desiree, what…what-" Vlad stammered but was interrupted by a small cry. Vlad's head jerked, it sounded like a baby's cry.

Ignoring Desiree, he instantly shot to his feet when he realised that one of Skulker's trapping cubes was sat at the other side of the room. When he reached it he gasped when his eyes clapped on a new born baby boy inside it!

"My God!" Vlad choked. He tried to summon his ecto-energy to break open the cube, but it would not come. Vlad quickly gave up given the urgency of the situation and grabbed one of his gadgets from a nearby cabinet. The nature of the device quickly allowed him to swipe open the cube, causing it to disintegrate. Vlad took off his blazer which was miraculously no longer seeped in blood/ectoplasm, and he wrapped it around the baby as he picked him up.

The baby's whines of discomfort faded as Vlad held him and wrapped him up. Vlad was breathing heavily and his heart was pounding fast with the confusion of finding a baby in his lab!

"Where did you come from?" He whispered to the infant.

The baby squinted his eyes open to reveal two icy blue coloured orbs. Vlad gasped, he recognised those eyes, he was certain they belonged to the son of Jack and Maddie Fenton! The living son anyway, the child Vlad was more familiar with had traded his black hair and blue eyes in for white hair and green eyes…This couldn't be Daniel, could it? This same baby did have a head of wispy black hair also, but Vlad still couldn't be sure, it wasn't possible? He looked over to where Desiree lay, and quickly marched over to the weakened ghost.

"Desiree, what's going on?" He demanded, as he leaned down next to her, the baby still cradled in one arm, "Where did this baby come from and who does he belong to? And where's Daniel? Skulker didn't take him did he?"

Desiree shook her head, her eyes locked on the baby. She knew who he was, she had been so overjoyed that her magic had saved Vlad, but why had it turned Danny into a baby? Unless…

Desiree smiled weakly at Vlad, "He's yours." She answered happily referring to the baby, "It's Danny, Vlad. You…You must have been his unfinished business."

Vlad's eyes widened at Desiree's statement, he looked down at the baby again. How could this be Daniel? And what did she mean about the 'unfinished business?'

"What…What are you talking about?" Vlad stammered, "How can this baby be Daniel?"

"He…He wished for me to make a wish Vlad." Desiree replied weakly.

It felt as though the impact from her wish was causing her waste away. But she didn't care.

"So I wished that you would live from your injury, and that you would be happy." Desiree continued, and she smiled at the baby, "And he's going to make you happy! He moved on, and has been born again!"

Vlad gasped. Could it be true? Had Desiree really allowed Danny to 'move on?' The baby moaned softly in Vlad's arms.

"Desiree, I don't understand," Vlad whispered, "Why would you wish for this?"

Desiree smiled weakly at Vlad, "Because…you deserve happiness…and I love you."

Desiree suddenly gasped, as she felt a huge release of pressure escape from her body. Vlad also gasped as he watched Desiree begin to turn…translucent. She continued to fade away by the second.

"What's happening?" She whispered worriedly.

"Desiree…" Vlad quietly spoke, "I think I was your unfinished business too."

Desiree smiled, as she realised she was finally moving on, she would finally be at peace. Vlad leaned forward and gently kissed her on the cheek, granting her final everlasting wish as the last of her vanished from existence forever.

 **()()()**

Skulker and Ember flew rapidly through the Ghost Zone, making their way back to Plasmius' portal. Ember didn't waste any time in following Skulker, she was livid that her plans had, yet again, been demolished. She'd had enough, and she wanted her pound of flesh. As the couple reached the portal they flew straight through without hesitation.

Skulker landed in the lab first, and froze immediately when he saw that Vlad was sat upright, not injured at all. The half ghost turned and gave Skulker a sombre look, revealing he had an infant in his arms. Ember quickly followed after Skulker, she halted in mid-air when she saw Vlad, and scowled in confusion.

"I thought you said you sliced him open?" Ember scorned.

"I did." Skulker growled, glaring at Vlad. "What kind of species are you?"

Skulker was convinced that no being; ghost, human, or in-between could recover from an injury that serious so fast. So how did Vlad?

"Human." Vlad replied clearly, standing to his feet. He had been sitting for some time contemplating this new situation, and making a realisation after Desiree had 'passed on.'

"What are you talking about?" Skulker demanded, "And where's that whelp? I had him trapped before I left! What's going on here Plasmius?"

"Skulker, you promised me ecto-plasm…" Ember murmured irritably.

"Shut up a minute will you!" Skulker hissed back. "Plasmius?"

"Plasmius is no more." Vlad sighed, "It was Desiree. She got what she wanted, she robbed me of my half-ghost status and Daniel…Well, see for yourselves, she's rendered Daniel a helpless human infant." Vlad said coldly, lowering his arms to show them the baby.

What Vlad had said had been entirely true. However he was being extremely careful in how he worded it. Vlad had discovered just moments before that he had been completely unable to transform into his ghost half, and none of his powers would come to him. All would suggest that when Desiree had wished Vlad 'a long and happy life,' it was to be as a human.

"What?" Ember cried.

"Where is that wretched mage now?" Skulker demanded, "I have had enough of her meddling in my affairs."

"She's gone." Vlad answered emotionlessly, "She finally got what she wanted. She's 'moved on.'"

"WHAT?" Ember screamed, her hair flamed wildly and she threw her guitar at the floor in anger, "I don't believe this!"

Vlad scowled at the diva ghost, as her outburst had caused a startled Danny to cry. Skulker glared at Vlad.

"How do I know you're not lying?" The hunter ghost snarled at Vlad.

Vlad scoffed at the ghost whilst clumsily rocking the distressed baby in his arms, "Look at me Skulker, I'm holding a baby who was a teenager twenty minutes ago for crying out loud! And I haven't forgotten that you stabbed me, by the way. Do you think that if I had ghost powers you would still be standing unharmed right now?" Vlad challenged.

Skulker sighed angrily, this was not news he wanted whatsoever.

"So what do we do now, huh?" Ember demanded, picking up her guitar and swinging radically.

"Well, you came here to see the end to Desiree and Daniel." Vlad stated, "I'm afraid you're too late for Desiree, Daniel on the other hand, is right here."

Vlad walked over to the two livid ghosts and held the new born out to them so as they could get a good look.

"Go on Ember," Vlad cleverly coaxed the diva, "You wanted to end him, go ahead. It'll be easy as human babies have no ability in self-defence."

Ember's face twitched in anger as she stared down at the squirming infant. Although the anger was boiling within her, she knew she would never be able to bring herself to hurt a helpless human baby.

"I'm outta here!" She declared loudly, as she turned around and jumped back through the portal to go home.

Vlad smiled in triumph, he knew that Ember wasn't cold enough to hurt a baby.

"Don't be getting all cocky just yet, Plasmius." Skulker growled, "I'm not through with you!"

Vlad sighed in irritation, "Skulker, I am willing to overlook the fact that you unjustly attacked me, given the nature of your ghostly status. However, you would be unwise to be break ties with me. Although I am no longer part ghost and will be unable to help you in the Ghost Zone, just remember how good you've had it all of these years having an ally in the human world. That benefit can still continue. Do not let your foolish pride stand in the way of it. The way I see it you are no worse off now than you from before all of this started. I hope you can see to reason." Vlad stated knowing as he paced.

Skulker frowned as thoughts raced through his mind. He knew how clever Vlad could be with negotiation, he was a businessman for crying out loud. But what he said also made sense, and Skulker really did have nothing to gain by further attacking Vlad, and he felt he had already lost enough.

"Fine." Skulker growled. "You win this time Plasmius. But I hope for your sake that you keep up your end of the deal!"

"I never break a promise." Vlad smiled.

Skulker scowled at his ally before he too turned around and jumped back through the portal. Vlad walked over and deactivated it.

"That goes for you too Daniel." Vlad said softly to the infant, who looked up at the man, "I believe I told you some time ago that I would take you in and look after you, and my offer stands."

Vlad began to walk with Danny out of the lab, "Let's see how well Desiree's wish will work for this wonderful life, shall we?"

 **()()()**

As time went by the lives of those who lived in Amity Park continued to be exciting and taunted by random ghost attacks. However the town remained well protected. Jack and Maddie Fenton stuck by their word and quit their independent ghost hunting career. It had been a difficult thing for them to do at the time, however they soon settled into their roles at Axion Labs. The couple thrived in their work and each proved to be assets to the team. Their knowledge on anti-ghost technology lifted the performance of Axion Labs greatly, and the town remained safer against large invasions or extremely malice ghost attacks.

Meanwhile, whilst the Fenton's remained within Axion Labs, solo ghosts such as Ember and Skulker relished in having the run of the city, so long as they kept their ghostly practices low key and stayed off the spectral detection radar. The Guy's in White were rarely an issue, and the ghosts of the Ghost Zone got a kick out of outsmarting them. In-between trying to discover their 'unfinished business,' that is!

Sam continued to have multiple dreams about the mysterious teenaged Danny at night. As time progressed they weren't just together in the lab at FentonWorks. There were times where they were at Sam's school together, walking down the street together, in her house, at Tucker's house, the arcade, the mall, even just sitting on a patch of grass at the park. They did all kinds of things together at these venues, and they had some amazing, deep conversations. At times in these dreams, Sam could feel her heart begin to race, like an impulse telling her to lean in to him, that it was right…she would always wake up feeling confused, and in a way, heartbroken.

Time continued to pass by, and Sam learned to live with and accept the dreams. In fact she almost looked forward to them when she went to bed at night. She never spoke about it to anyone because she knew it was crazy that she practically had a friendship with someone from a dream. However, although she didn't talk about him, and he wasn't a part of her daily life, Sam could never forget about Danny.

Vlad Masters' life had completely changed. And he couldn't be happier. Being a skilled negotiator from his career in business had proved very beneficial since the arrival of baby Daniel. Vlad was able to register Danny as his son, and completed a range of paper work and computer data which falsely evidenced that Danny was his, through the process of a privately paid anonymous surrogate mother.

Vlad had made a lot of changes to his life and home. He had permanently cut his hours of work down by half so as he could be with Danny. He had set up a gorgeous nursery in the room next to his, with an outer space theme. The baby had everything he could possibly need.

Vlad spent less time in his study and his lab. In fact, he was rarely in his lab at all. Vlad would be there on the rare occasion when he and Skulker would come together to discuss or construct something, and he had removed every spy camera he'd ever planted. Including the ones in the Fenton's home. Vlad no longer felt the need to spy on the Fenton's, they were no longer a part of his life. It had taken years but Vlad had finally given up on all of his obsessions, including the one for Maddie Fenton. Vlad had learned how to enjoy life and be happy without pining after his love interest from college. And it was proving to be a great way to live.

Danny was a happy baby, and he was thriving under the care of Vlad. For a few days after Desiree's wish Vlad had expected Danny to revert to his teenaged self at some stage. But after caring for baby Daniel, Vlad decided he didn't care that Danny remained an infant. He was happy to wait the years out until Danny grew back into the smart-mouthed and somewhat irritating teenager he had been when Vlad first met him.

Vlad had struggled to adjust to a life without ghost powers again. At times he even felt angry at Desiree for causing his powers to leave him. However Vlad soon discovered that his powers had made him power-hungry, and that was robbing him of his happiness. Vlad learned to adjust and quickly found he could lead a happy life if he allowed himself to.

Of course, Danny played a big part in this happiness. Although caring for a baby was hard and tiresome work, Vlad found that it was extremely rewarding and worthwhile, as the bond and connection the baby had with him was priceless. Vlad was sometimes fearful of what would happen when Danny grew up, would it be difficult like it had been when he first arrived? Perhaps Vlad didn't have a way with teenagers, and he had wondered about what would keep them close. He recalled a prime reason as to why he took Danny in in the first place was to train him to be a brilliant ghost. This was no longer applicable. Vlad decided that he would have to try to help to guide Danny achieve a different goal, something which he really wanted to strive for this time round. The billionaire decided that it didn't matter what it was, he had faith in himself and Desiree's wish that he would always strive for happiness, so long as Danny could be happy too.

 **()()()**

 **Well everyone this chapter concludes Going Ghost Forever. Thank you to everyone who has taken the time to read this story, and I have felt inspired by all those who have followed/favorited and reviewed after each chapter.**

 **I hope you all have enjoyed this story, I enjoyed writing it. I look forward to reading your thoughts and options, should any of you wish to comment on the ending.**

 **xseriouslyx**


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